Speaking Notes for
Jean-Pierre Blackburn,
Minister of Labour and Minister of the Economic
Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
at
The Building and Construction Trades Department’s 2006
Canadian Legislative Conference
Ottawa
May 8, 2006
Check against delivery
Ladies and gentlemen, delegates to the Canadian Legislative Conference of the Building and Construction Trades Department. Welcome you to our nation’s capital. I also want to thank you for giving me an opportunity to speak to you. I am honoured to accept your invitation, and to meet with you for the first time. You are representatives of one of the most productive sectors of our economy.
I am pleased to be here this morning with people who work in construction. My father, Gustave Blackburn, who turned 88 on Saturday, was a carpenter-joiner. When I was very young, he used to take me along with him to do all kinds of construction work.
When I decided at age 25 that I wanted a house, my father told me, “You are going to build it yourself.” He was at my side, but he refused to pick up a hammer, handsaw or square. He would say, “Jean-Pierre, take your square and place it half an inch in from the wall, then make a mark at 16 inches.” I would hold my square the wrong way, and he would say, “Not like that.” I would turn it the other way but it still wasn’t right; it was never right. But that was how I learned. That was kind of how I grew up. So I am happy to be here with you today to make this first speech.
As you know, it was only recently that Prime Minister Stephen Harper did me the honour of appointing me Minister of Labour and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec.
It was a real pleasure for me to accept these new responsibilities, and I am already hard at work. Over the years through my work in the House of Commons and on the Standing Committee on Labour, Employment and Immigration and, most recently, I developed a real passion for the world of work, whether it be the subject of equity, or on all issues related to the protection of workers, or occupational health and safety standards.
I am pleased to see that we share essentially the same objectives of the Canadian Office of the Building and Construction Trades Department with respect to matters such as:
- employment equity;
- workplace safety; and
- skills development and learning.
These are key elements of my government’s program. In fact, these objectives are also in line with those of the Labour Program and those of the Department of Human Resources and Social Development.
As well, you can be certain that I intend to carry out the mission, mandate and activities of the Labour Program in developing, managing and applying the statutes and regulations that govern the workplace.
I also intend to promote a work climate that encourages co operation, constructive labour management relations and investment in the well-being of employees.
I would like to take this opportunity today to speak to you about issues that affect you and which constitute government priorities as well.
Our government is firmly committed to:
- clean up government by passing the Federal Accountability Act;
- provide real tax relief to working families by cutting the GST;
- make our streets and communities safer by cracking down on crime;
- help all parents with raising their children; and
- work with the provinces to establish a Patient Wait Times Guarantee.
This plan is based on integrity, family and respect for hard work. I sincerely believe that you also share these values.
My government wants to build a Canada that is strong and united. And to do this, we intend to do things differently and in a new spirit of co operation with organizations such as yours, with entrepreneurs, and of course, with the different levels of government, whether municipal, provincial or territorial.
In other words, we must also address the significant challenges that your organization faces.
Because these challenges are also our challenges — whether they involve skills development, assistance for the trades, the changing nature of work, or wage earner protection.
Allow me to touch on these issues for a moment.
I would first like to say a few words about the Wage Earner Protection Program. This project will help protect some of the most vulnerable workers — those who are the most threatened in cases of business bankruptcy.
The Wage Earner Protection Program will serve to guarantee the payment of unpaid wages and earned vacation pay of up to $3,000 in a timely manner. Our government supports this program with the intention of implementing it. Of course, we hope that we can count on the co-operation of the other parties to ensure that this program does indeed become a reality.
On another score, I’m sure that you also know, perhaps more than any other group, that Canada’s success depends on the productivity of Canadian workers, and that the productivity of Canadian workers depends, increasingly, on skills and learning.
You also know, because it’s something you see every day, that serious labour shortages are expected in some trades.
More and more construction workers are retiring every year.
It is estimated that, in the next ten years, the number of workers retiring will exceed the number of new workers entering the construction field.
The impact of this on construction projects now under way is clear. Imagine the impact that a shortage of specialized workers could have on a major project like the MacKenzie Valley gas pipeline – where workers would be governed by federal labour laws.
Many of you — unions and employers — have told us how concerned you are about this shortage. In fact, the need for more workers in specialized trades was, for us, an important issue in the last election campaign.
I think you will agree that the solution to these problems lies, in part, on recognizing and promoting specialized trades, and learning.
That is why, in its recent May 3rd Budget, the Government of Canada announced important support measures for specialized trades. Those measures will help not only those workers considering a career in specialized trades, but also employers who will be giving them opportunities to learn in the future.
Our first Budget, tabled just a few days ago, has served to fulfil one of our election promises – to implement a plan to increase the number of apprentices in specialized trades in Canada.
The plan provides for an Apprentice Incentive Grant. The grant of 1,000 dollars per year will be paid to apprentices in one of the 45 Red Seal trades in the first two years of their apprenticeship program. It is estimated that nearly 100,000 apprentices could benefit from the grant every year.
The plan also provides for an Apprenticeship Job Creation Tax Credit. This is an incentive to encourage employers to hire new apprentices in the 45 Red Seal trades. Eligible employers will receive a tax credit equivalent to 10 per cent of an apprentice’s wages for the first two years of their contract, up to a maximum of 2,000 dollars per apprentice, per year.
My government will also be offering a Tools Tax Deduction. to a maximum of 500 dollars per year, to help make sure that apprentices and tradespeople have the tools they need.
All these measures are part of a plan aimed primarily at consolidating the federal assistance framework for post-secondary education. They represent important and rewarding investments because they contribute to our future prosperity, and the social and economic well-being of Canadians.
In a few minutes, you will begin your reflections on the “Craft Compact”. Before leaving you, I want to remind you that we have shared interests, and that it is important for us to work together to promote healthy and productive workplaces.
We are partners, and as such I hope to work with you – workers and employers alike – to acquire the tools we need to build a better Canada.
I wish you all an excellent conference.
2006 Canadian Legislative Conference of the Building and Construction Trades Department, Ottawa
OTTAWA—The Minister of Labour and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, the Honourable Jean-Pierre Blackburn, speaks at the 2006 Canadian Legislative Conference of the Building and Construction Trades Department, in Ottawa.
For more information, please contact:
Roxane Marchand
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Blackburn
(819) 953-5646
Media Relations
Human Resources and Social Development Canada
(819) 994-5559
2006 Canadian Legislative Conference of the Building and Construction Trades Department, Ottawa
OTTAWA—The Minister of Labour and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, the Honourable Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Director of Canadian Affairs, and Vice President for the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry of the United States and Canada Michel Grenier, and President for the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry of the United States and Canada Williams P. Hyte, at the 2006 Canadian Legislative Conference of the Building and Construction Trades Department, in Ottawa.
For more information, please contact: Roxane Marchand
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Blackburn
(819) 953-5646
Media Relations
Human Resources and Social Development Canada
(819) 994-5559