The Contemporary Aboriginal Workforce

1. The Contemporary Aboriginal Workforce

2. Aboriginal employees will help reach and service the large, growing Aboriginal market. Key Facts: • Population size- there are more than 1.3 million Aboriginal peoples across Canada (See Figure 2). • Population growth - one of the fastest growing segments of the population in Canada, the Aboriginal population is increasing in every province and territory (See Figures 1, 3, 4, 5). • Sectoral impacts - significant positive impact will affect certain sectors such as education/training services, computer-based learning, youth recreation market, etc. • Growing financial strength - land claim settlements have yielded, and will continue to yield, large sums of money to the Aboriginal population. As a result, significant amounts are spent outside Aboriginal communities, benefiting surrounding non-Aboriginal economies. • Purchasing power - resulting from population growth, income growth, economic development and land claims. Aboriginal communities comprise a multi-billion-dollar market for goods and services (Figure 15).

3. Aboriginal peoples represent an important source of new entrants and new skills for the workforce. Key Facts: • Labour force growth - over the next decade (1997-2007), the Aboriginal labour force is projected to grow by 23 percent (Figures 7, 8). • Rising education levels - the number of Aboriginal peoples with post-secondary education tripled between 1981 and 1991 to 150,000. The retention rate of on-reserve schools increased from 13 percent in 1969-70 to 75 percent in 1995-96 (Figure 12). • Extensive training activities - Aboriginal peoples participate in many training initiatives. In 1990, Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) started to sign partnership agreements with Aboriginal peoples to facilitate Aboriginal training and employment. In the latter part of this decade, HRDC has been exploring and experiencing the transfer of authority over the design and delivery of Aboriginal training and employment programming to the Aboriginal community. The overall budget for this exercise, renewed for five years as of April 1999, continues to be over $200 million per year.

4. Aboriginal peoples represent an important source of new entrants and new skills for the workforce. (Continued) Key Facts: • Relevant skills - Aboriginal peoples work in many occupations, including business and finance, management, social sciences and education, health, and natural and applied sciences (See Figure 14). • Proximity to workplaces - most Aboriginal peoples live within commuting distance of the majority of workplaces. More than 80 percent of the on-reserve registered Indian population lives near urban centres or rural communities (See Figure 10). • Increased mobility - today, Aboriginal peoples are much more mobile, with many relocating to where opportunities are available (Figure 11).

5. Aboriginal employment opportunities contribute to local community support for new resource development projects. Key Facts: • Environmental legislation - federal and provincial environmental legislation gives local Aboriginal communities considerable influence over project approvals, especially if such projects would have a significant socio-economic impact on lifestyle and traditional activities. • Licensing approvals - the Ontario government has stipulated that any developer of "areas of traditional use by First Nations" must negotiate all aspects of the development with the local First Nations, as part of the licensing approval process. • Socio-economic impacts - the Nunavut Impact Review Board has the mandate to screen and review projects that may have significant adverse socio-economic effects on northerners or projects that generate significant public concern.

6. Providing employment opportunities facilitates successful business joint ventures with Aboriginal communities. Key Facts: • Community infrastructure - the growth and revitalization of many Aboriginal communities is generating significant growth of community infrastructure, providing opportunities for joint ventures in construction and other areas of infrastructure development (Figure 16). • Aboriginal Business Procurement Policy - the policy is designed to increase the number of Aboriginal businesses and joint ventures bidding for federal government contracts. All federal departments are encouraged to set aside opportunities for Aboriginal suppliers. Aboriginal firms are given first opportunity to supply goods and services in contracts servicing Aboriginal communities. Aboriginal joint ventures must be 51 percent Aboriginal owned and firms of six or more employees, 33 percent of full-time employees must be Aboriginal.

7. Aboriginal employees bring knowledge and values that can assist corporate change and growth. Key Facts: • Aboriginal values - Aboriginal peoples place a high value on consensus and respect for others. • Diversity in decision making - Aboriginal employment increasing diversity in the workplace. This, in turn, yields richness of ideas, better-informed decisions and enhanced performance within the organization. • Respect for land - land is a valued legacy to future generations. Traditional philosophy of land management is based on long-term protection of the environment. • Traditional knowledge - the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has noted that "the indigenous peoples of the world possess an immense knowledge of their environments, based on centuries of living close to nature. Living in and from the richness and variety of complex ecosystems, they have an understanding of the properties of plants and animals, the functioning of ecosystems and the techniques for using and managing them...."

8. Aboriginal employment helps companies meet their legal obligations and improves their access to federal contracts. Key Facts: • Employment Equity Act - the Act requires federally-regulated employers to achieve a representative workforce. Organizations that fall short of this goal may face complaints under the Canadian Human Rights Act on grounds of employment discrimination. • Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms - the Charter (and provincial and territorial human rights statutes) permits employers to take special measures to achieve equitable representation of Aboriginal peoples and other groups in the workforce. • Provincial surface lease agreements - such agreements may set conditions that require mining companies to create and improve employment opportunities for Aboriginal peoples. • Federal Contractors Program - major contractors to the federal government are required to implement and report on their employment equity initiatives.

9. Aboriginal employment opens international opportunities, especially in the resources area. Key Facts: • New mining opportunities - as the likelihood of large surface mines in traditional mining areas diminishes, the exploration focus in on new frontiers such as Canada’s northern territories, Latin America and Asia-Pacific, all areas with significant indigenous populations. • Investment risk - community support or opposition significantly impacts the risk and costs of large capital projects. Corporate risk-management strategies place more emphasis on initiatives to achieve long-term community support.

10. References • Aboriginal Workforce Participation Initiative (Employer Toolkit book), c 1998Indian and Northern Affairs, CanadaGraphics reproduced by Barry Andrie, A.Sc.T., GIS Unit, IT, Saskatchewan Education, with the permission of the Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada, 2002.