TAKING STOCK – PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE
Pre-Symposium Paper for the National Symposium on Career Development,
Lifelong Learning and Workforce Development
Saskatchewan’s Submission

Introduction

Career Development requires a concerted effort on the part of everyone to be successful. This involves a shared responsibility of individuals, family, service providers, employers and the community-at-large. When these sectors work together co-operatively the benefits to the individual and society are significant. In Saskatchewan, our preparation for participating at the National Symposium has reinforced the belief that it is essential that a broad-based partnership of committed organizations at the provincial level exist in order to effectively address the needs, challenges and opportunities identified. It is also critical that we acknowledge up front that we have some excellent partnerships already in place and that we can build on these partnerships to expand our efforts to improve the development and delivery of career services and programs on a province-wide basis.

In preparation for the National Symposium on Career Development, Lifelong Learning and Workforce Development, a round table with key stakeholders was convened in April 2003 to begin discussions and planning for the Symposium. It was later determined that the information for the pre-symposium paper from Saskatchewan would be based upon feedback from a mail-out survey containing questions suggested by the Canadian Career Development Foundation [CCDF (with a few modifications – see Attachment 1)]. Comments were solicited from the learning sector, labour, business, industry, community-based organizations, several provincial government departments and Human Resources Development Canada-Saskatchewan Region. It was also planned that the findings from the survey could be used for future province-wide strategic planning in career development.

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Feedback from the survey was summarized to present commonalties among respondents. A Saskatchewan career development profile is included to provide a broad context for the report. The section on unique contextual features of Saskatchewan is important because it provides background for some of the issues and challenges presented later in this paper.

Profile of Career Development Services in Saskatchewan

In Saskatchewan, career development course offerings are part of the K-12 curriculum for Grades69 (Career Guidance) and 10-12 (Career and Work Exploration, and Life Transitions). As well, career development competencies are integrated in the more than forty (40) Practical and Applied Arts courses and the English Language Arts curricula. Career development competencies, based on the Blueprint for Life/ Work Designs, are being infused across all subject areas over the next few years. The Saskatchewan Job Chart, Saskatchewan Job Futures, career fairs, career skills portfolio implementation, and the use of career tools and supports such as RealGame, SaskNetWork, and Career Information Hotline provide additional resources for students, teachers, and counsellors. Job coaches and guidance counsellors provide information on career pathways and supports for students to assist in school-to-work and school-to-school transitions. The post-secondary component of the education system also provides career development. The transition from school to work is supported by the post-secondary system through career counselling, supporting learner’s identification of knowledge, skills and attributes, providing portfolio development support, and identifying and making links with employers of interest. However, it needs to be acknowledged that continuous articulation between the secondary and post-secondary education systems is important to address issues arising from the movement of students through the education system and into employment.

The provincial government through the Canada Saskatchewan Career and Employment Service Centres (Can-Sask Centres) also provides career development services to adults. Twenty centres throughout the province provide career, training and employment services and supports that facilitate transitions between learning and work. Services include assisted self-serve resource centres, individual counselling, workshops, employment/training programs and employer services. The SaskNetWork web site provides an online source for career information on Job search (including job postings) job matching, career planning, education and training opportunities, labour market information, self-employment options and general workplace information for employees and employers.

The public side of career development provides another major source of supports and services. Outside of the learning and provincial government sectors, there are various community-based organizations (serving immigrants, Métis, First Nations, persons with disabilities, etc.) and private agencies/organizations, that provide a range of career and employment services.

There is some concern amongst career development practitioners, policy makers and individuals that services and programs in the province lacks cohesion, wide-spread accessibility by all audiences, systematic monitoring and defined outcomes. There is no central point through which planning and information sharing is done that could facilitate joint leadership in career development and assist service providers in moving in a common direction and creating a career development culture for continuos improvement.

The gaps in career development services suggest that Saskatchewan lacks a, coherent, broad-based “system” of career development. A vision of a comprehensive system may begin to take shape within a future career development strategy being developed in Saskatchewan for the learning sector, which encompasses the K-12 and post-secondary education systems. To be effective, this strategy will need to engage many stakeholder groups and be responsive to diverse needs.

Definition of “Career Development”

The Saskatchewan Career Development Services and Supports Survey asked respondents to provide a working definition of career development. Definitions varied along a continuum that started from a more traditional vocational approach focusing on immediate educational and occupational/ employment choices towards a broader approach that also included the development of long-term career management skills that could be applied over a lifetime.

The traditional definition of career development is focussed on the goal of preparing for the world of work. It is seen as encompassing the development of the wholeperson, but places a critical emphasis ongaining theskills andexperience for work in order to findone’s vocation in life. The primary goal of this approach isdirected to improving one’s employability for obtaining meaningful work.

The second view of career development defines it as a lifelong process of becoming aware of, exploring and experiencing factors that influence various aspects of a person’s life. The knowledge, skills and attitudes that evolve through this path of discovery enable planning and decision making not only about work exploration and related employment and vocational choices but also about personal management and life/work skills. Career development is part of lifelong learning, in that personal and vocational skills constantly change and expand during a lifetime in response to career changes and emerging opportunities.

Reaching consensus on a common definition of career development will be a challenge that needs to be addressed in any proposed career development strategy. This definition will need to be flexible enough to gain the support of all stakeholders.

Unique Contextual Features in Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan is characterized by a number of distinctive features that have significant influence over the nature of career development services and supports. The population of Saskatchewan hovers around one million and a significant proportion of people live in the two major urban centres of Regina and Saskatoon (38%). The remainder of the population is distributed in a handful of relatively small cities (25%) and rural areas (37%). Services and supports in career development and employment are limited to these larger centres with rural areas being largely under-served.

Over the last twenty years, Saskatchewan’s population has remained relatively constant, with an average population growth of 0.1% per year, or the equivalent of just over 1,000 people per year. This is one of the lowest rates of population growth in the country.

While our total population has experienced very little growth, its demographic characteristics have been changing. First Nations people account for a larger proportion of natural population growth in Saskatchewan and will represent a larger proportion of our total population over the coming years. Also, the age-structure of our population is changing. Saskatchewan’s population is ageing and this is evidenced in the projected population trends. In Saskatchewan, the population in the "baby boom" age group (currently aged 40 to 54) will continue to increase for five to ten years, and then begin to decline. The group of people aged 55 to 64 will increase. Younger age groups – those aged 15 to 24 and 25 to 39 – will experience a slight increase in their populations.[1]

The labour force in Saskatchewan will be affected by these population projections, as there will be fewer workers available to replace retiring workers.

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Projected 1
1998 / 2003 / 2008 / 2013 / 2018
Total Potential Labour Force (assuming constant participation rates of Registered Indian population) / 519,960 / 531,490 / 536,745 / 530,387 / 518,611
Registered Indian Labour Force / 25,896 / 32,167 / 39,962 / 49,097 / 59,186

However, the projected rate of growth in the labour force slows substantially in the coming years, and the size of the labour force in Saskatchewan is expected to peak between 2008 and 2013. Employers will need to draw upon the resources of all Saskatchewan people and find ways of attracting and retaining workers with a variety of backgrounds and experiences, including First Nations andMétis peoples, persons with disabilities and immigrant and refugee persons. The rapidly growing Aboriginal population provides the greatest opportunity to build the work force of the future. While an estimated 8% to 12% of new labour market entrants (15 to 24 years of age) are currently Aboriginal, this proportion is estimated to increase to about 29% by 2015.[2] Significant efforts will be required to position young Aboriginal people to compete in the market place with its increasing demands for educational attainment and acquisition of skills. Also, with many Aboriginal people living in isolated areas of the province, there are additional challenges to be addressed in career management associated with geographic location.

But even with increased labour market participation of Aboriginal people and individuals from other disadvantaged groups, Saskatchewan, like all other provinces and territories in Canada, will increasingly have to turn to immigration to address its labour market shortages and other demographic challenges. Immigration is anticipated to account for all net labour force growth in Canada by 2011, and for all net population growth by 2031.[3]

Another distinctive feature in Saskatchewan is the predominance of small employers in the private sector. Sixty percent of employers have less than five employees and an additional twenty-nine percent of employers have less than 20 employees. While larger employers offer systematic career development within their organizations, most small employers have few resources to provide this kind of benefit. Many employers have limited, if any human resource development capabilities. If there is in-house human resource supports, it is limited to hiring, firing and remuneration. Because of the large proportion of small employers in this province, very few workers have support available for career development.

Saskatchewan has pride in the unique relationship it has forged with the Aboriginal community. The partnerships established with the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN), partnerships with other First Nations groups, the First Nations University of Canada, Gabriel Dumont Institute (the only Métis owned and operated post secondary institution in Canada), the Northern Teacher Education Program (NORTEP) for northern Saskatchewan, are all examples of the partnerships that Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST) and the Universities have with the Aboriginal community are all valued and advance the career development of Aboriginal people.

Strengths in Saskatchewan

One of the key strengths in Saskatchewan is the collaborative approach used to plan and undertake program development and other initiatives. Meaningful consultation, linked with collaborative responses to real needs, has created many successful programs and initiatives in the province. Some notable examples are: K-12 curriculum development;the SchoolPLUS initiative; Job Start Future Skills; Sector Partnerships Program; the Northern Labour Market Committee; the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission;the Saskatchewan Labour Force Development Board;Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL); joint federal-provincial career and labour market product development projects such as Saskatchewan Job Futures and Sask Job Chart Aboriginal partnerships; the Canada-Saskatchewan Career and Employment services delivery system, and countless others.

The key to success when undertaking these programs and initiatives and maintaining their long-term sustainability lies in the commitment to incorporating the principles of partnership to obtain stakeholder buy-in and support. Collaboration and capacity building are core principles. All stakeholders must be engaged in a process that is meaningful and is based on common goals and an action plan that is mutually agreeable.

Important Issues in Career Development

There were a number of issues that were identified by respondents that are considered important in building effective career development services. They include the following:

Individualized Services

Making sure that delivery is based upon a balance of individual and social needs requires that supports and services are individualized rather than generic. The approach of addressing the specific barriers of the client is more costly and requires greater expertise, but results are more long term. Some generic kinds of programs would still be useful but should be designed after careful research into current and real needs of the client and service provider populations.

Service Provider Training

The training of personnel in a wide array of career development and knowledge competencies is a critical component of successful program and service delivery. Standards and guidelines for this development will be essential for both career development practitioners and managers.

Dissemination and Effective Use of Information

Access to information is central to effective career management. There are many excellent career and employment information resources, as well as many outstanding Saskatchewan products. Unfortunately, those who could benefit from them do not always know these products, or if they are aware of them, they do not always know how to use them effectively. Delivery and effective use of career information is a critical area that needs significant improvement in Saskatchewan. Career information must be comprehensive, impartial, user-friendly, reliable and current. It must be provided in a timely fashion and from a wide variety of sources. Preferably career information should be available in a variety of formats including print, audio-visual, computer and the Internet. CommunityNet, a high speed Internet and wide area network, is accessible to 60% of Saskatchewan which provides an excellent vehicle for information dissemination. Information obtained through experience is also invaluable and people require exposure to real job situations to assist in the career exploration process. Service providers and point persons for information dissemination are not always adequately trained and they need to be given the time for professional development.

In some settings, dedicated trained staff in the delivery of career information is not available. Some career/employment information has a narrow focus and does not reflect the broad universe of possibilities in advising on career development options and pathways. For example, information on educational opportunities is too frequently focussed on university level education and, as a result, it does not reflect the value of trades training. In some circumstances, in order to achieve a more balanced view of opportunities, schools have created partnerships with Can-Sask centres to provide career and employment services on site. For the most part, this linkage has proven to be effective.

Standards and Guidelines for Quality Services

In general in Saskatchewan there is the absence of standards and guidelines governing the delivery of career and employment services. Typically, standards cover a broad spectrum of career development components including: access to services, facilities, the training of personnel, resource support and accountability. The lack of standards can result in career development services being poorly understood and undervalued. Fortunately there has been considerable work done recently at a national level to develop Canadian Guidelines and Standards for career practitioners. These standards will need to be examined in the province and if they are deemed to be of value actions planned to see how to implement them.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The workplace is changing, requiring employees to develop and apply new skill sets, often acquiring these skills on-the-job. Saskatchewan Learning and various partners/stakeholders are increasing capacity to correctly assess and reward an individual’s prior learning, from both informal and formal sources. Continuous learning is a growing expectation in the workplace and recognition of prior learning is a means to support, encourage and reward that learning. Learning recognition enhances the performance of businesses, as it encourages staff members to improve their own skills and abilities by building on what they know and, ultimately, leads to innovation and improved productivity. Workers also seek to build transferable and portable skills, and Recognition of Prior Learning provides a means to transfer between and among systems.

The demands of learners on the education system are changing and have resulted in the development of more learner-focused institutions that provide flexible and responsive programming. The growing trend of part-time and non-sequential learners, including learners enrolling in part-time programs while maintaining full-time employment, has created a need for RPL services that serve as a bridge to the recognition of workplace learning.

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Strengths and Challenges in Career Development