Essential Skills - National Adult Literacy Database

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Essential Skills and the Northern Oil and Gas Workforce Final Report and Resource Guide
CONFERENCE RATIONALE
The focus of Essential Skills and the Northern Oil and Gas Workforce was on
effective training with a particular emphasis on the role of essential skills enhancement in
the development of the northern workforce. It was hoped that this conference would help to
raise awareness of essential skills and provide a jumping off point for increased essential
skills integration in education and workplace training programs.
The Mackenzie Gas Project, the diamond mines and the oil sands projects will all require
workers in the next several years. In their recently completed study The Decade Ahead, the
Petroleum Human Resources Sector Council (PHRSC) identified seven key human resources
issues that will face the oil and gas industry in the next decade. These include:
♦ promotion of careers in the industry
♦ access to the non-traditional workforce
♦ skills shortages
♦ shifting skill requirements.
As the economic boom in the north continues to grow in size and scope, the opportunities
for northern workers to become full economic participants in their local communities and in
the broader economy of the north and Canada also increases. In order for this full
participation to be realized, however, northerners must have access to relevant, useful
training that meets their requirements and the requirements of employers.
The skills shortage is already complicating labour supply in the major industries. Employers
need employees who have the ability to adapt to change and transfer skills from job to job.
Effective training programs that incorporate essential skills, will lead to a better return on
the investment to be made in training for northern-based workers.
But why focus on essential skills?
Essential skills are the skills people need for work, learning and life. They provide the
foundation for addressing all other skills and are the cornerstone of lifelong learning. These
skills are used in virtually all occupations and throughout daily life in different forms and at
different levels of complexity. Without adequate essential skills, individuals are less able to
acquire knowledge, adapt to workplace change, and benefit from the global economy.
Inclusion of essential skills in training programs has been proven to help increase the
success of trainees and enables them to access and retain jobs more effectively.
In order to be able to enhance training programs through the integration of essential skills,
northern-based trainers need opportunities to learn about essential skills, essential skills
focussed tools and resources that are available, and training programs that successfully
incorporate essential skills.
Essential Skills and the Northern Oil and Gas Workforce aimed to raise awareness,
promote the exchange of ideas and encourage the integration of essential skills into all
training.
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