OSPE - COVID-19 Economic Recovery Recommendations - Federal Government - 15

Further investment in this sector, would not only help fight climate change, but would also stimulate the economy by creating more jobs
for Ontarians across the entire province. This is extremely important now more than ever, due to high unemployment rates experienced
due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ensuring an adequate supply of skilled workers is crucial to supporting the sector's growth.
Government policies that help the energy efficiency sector thrive will lead to a more productive and sustainable workforce, that will help
grow the economy while protecting the environment.
Therefore, OSPE:
a. Supports the call from the Canada Green Building Council and Efficiency Canada to allocate $500 million ($1000 per employee) to
access existing training programs, and a further investment of $1 billion to attract and train new people to create energy efficient and
green building careers.
b. Suggests the Government of Canada, in partnership with the province of Ontario:

1. Ensures an in-depth skills gaps and needs assessment of the energy efficiency sector is conducted, including the building

sub-sector and occupations across the full ecosystem, from design and construction to building operation and management.

This would identify the most effective education and training pathways and determine how to update this information regularly

and expeditiously as markets and technologies evolve. Such assessment would lead to better understanding of current and

future needs.

2. Strengthen training provision by increasing the capacity of educators and trainers, specifically with emphasis on green

literacy basics, low-carbon skills and latest technologies training content.

3. Support training uptake by aiding new entrants and incumbent workers to build in-demand skills and rapidly up-skill for

re-employment, especially work such as building retrofits for energy efficiency and indoor air quality improvements. It is

recommended that design and engineering professionals, and skilled trades workers, who have been impacted by COVID-19

pandemic job losses, are given the opportunity for immediate skills training in areas already identified by employers and

unions in order to meet urgent demand for low-carbon building skills and associated occupations. Some of these include

energy modelling, low-carbon materials, mechanical/electrical and building automation systems, geothermal heat pumps,

photovoltaic systems, plumbing and pipefitting, etc.

4. Create incentives to support a strong culture of lifelong learning across Ontario and Canada, where employers and employees

are provided with the tools and resources to up-skill and retrain local talent. This year, OSPE is launching the Ontario

Engineering Academy (OEA) to up-skill/re-skill engineering graduates exclusively to meet industry needs in Ontario. Your

support of this initiative by mandating companies be responsible for the up-skilling of local employees is critical for

engineering graduates to adequately support Ontario's economic recovery. There is an opportunity for the government to

incentivize engineering companies to invest in the professional development of their employees, to ensure that they are

equipped with the knowledge and know-how to design and execute based on new realities.

OSPE - COVID-19 Economic Recovery Recommendations - Federal Government

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of OSPE - COVID-19 Economic Recovery Recommendations - Federal Government