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Human Resources and Skills Development Canada

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Sector Council Program

Sector Councils

Sector councils are permanent organizations that bring together representatives with different perspectives from key stakeholder groups in an industrial sector. Sector councils deal with human resources issues and share a commitment to identify and act on the skills needs that are most important to a given sector, including:

  • Defining human resources issues;
  • Recruiting and retaining workers;
  • Anticipating skills shortages;
  • Developing sector and career awareness strategies;
  • Facilitating school-to-work transitions;
  • Developing occupational standards; and
  • Promoting the workplace as a learning place.

The Government of Canada is working with the sector councils to identify which skills are needed today, and will be needed tomorrow, so that Canadians can compete more effectively in a rapidly changing labour market.

Objectives

The Sector Council Program recognizes the valuable role that sector councils have played in the past and are expected to play in the future. The Program builds on the sector councils’ success in taking a collaborative approach to workplace learning to keep Canada’s workers skilled, knowledgeable and competitive.

To maximize results and overall impact, the Sector Council Program is supported by four key pillars:

Growth – Broadening the scope

Expanding the network of sector councils to cover 50% of the labour market.

Excellence – Optimizing performance

Strengthening the ability of sector councils to demonstrate results and sustain impact in addressing workplace skills issues.

Innovation – Sharing creative solutions

Supporting and promoting new and effective practices in human resources planning and workplace skills development.

Synergy – Strengthening linkages

Positioning sector councils to deliver on horizontal policy issues by collaborating with the learning sector, and other key partners.

Benefits

What does this all mean for workers, employers and learning institutions?

For workers:

  • Practical and relevant on-the-job training;
  • Adaptability to changing and/or new workplace environments;
  • Improved job mobility; and
  • Fuller participation in the workforce.

For business:

  • New services for their workers;
  • A strong voice in developing training to meet their needs;
  • Increased industry relationships, nationally and internationally; and
  • A competitive edge in the knowledge-based economy.

For learning institutions:

  • Effective industry relationships;
  • Curricula responsive to industry needs; and
  • Expanded enrolment.

Ultimately, the activities of sector councils help employers and workers by creating solutions that are tailored to a sector’s needs. Having industry work with educators and trainers makes the Canadian learning system more responsive to the needs of the labour market. Workers get the skills they need and employers get a skilled workforce.

Together, the Government of Canada and sector councils are building the skilled workforce that a prosperous and productive Canada needs.

Contact Us

This publication is available in multiple formats (large print, audio cassette, Braille and diskette) in English and French.

Call 1-866-386-9624 (toll free) on a touch-tone phone.

You can order additional copies of this publication, indicating the departmental catalogue number HRIB-014-08-04, from:

Enquiries Centre
Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
140 Promenade du Portage
Phase IV, Level 0
Gatineau QC
K1A 0J9

Fax: (819) 953-7260 E-mail: publications@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca
© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada 2004
Cat. No. : HS43-1/2004 ISBN: 0-662-68335-8
Printed in Canada

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Date Modified:
2011-08-30