In
this edition of Between Us, find out about:
Ø
Parliament's Professional Engineers
Ø
National Engineering Week -
Discover the Engineer in You
Ø
Software Human Resource Council's (SHRC)
Expanding the Reach
Parliament's Professional Engineers
Engineers Canada wants the
concerns of our profession to be heard and understood on Parliament Hill. As a
result of the recent federal election, this might be easier as there are now
seven professional engineers who sit in the House of Commons-a dramatic
increase from the previous Parliament.
Professional
engineers elected to the 39th Parliament are:
Ø Omar
Alghabra, P.Eng. (Ont.) Liberal
Ø
Steven
Blaney, ing. (Que) Conservative
Ø
Robert Carrier, ing. (Que) Bloc Québécois (re-elected)
Ø Raymond Chan, P.Eng. (B.C.) Liberal
(re-elected)
Ø
Sukh Dhaliwal,
P.Eng. (B.C.) Liberal
Ø Pierre
Lemieux, P.Eng. (Ont.) Conservative
Ø Thierry St-Cyr, ing. (Que) Bloc Québécois
Unfortunately,
longstanding parliamentarian Andy Savoy, P.Eng., who knew Engineers Canada well, was
defeated in his bid for re-election.
However, the seven
MPs, combined with three senators, who are also professional engineers, namely
Joseph Day, P.Eng. (N.B.); Mac Harb, P.Eng. (Ont.); and, Robert Peterson,
P.Eng. (Sask), represent a significant core of potential support for advancing
engineering issues on Parliament Hill.
Engineers Canada looks
forward to working with these individuals, and other members of Parliament, to
add a valuable engineering perspective to important national issues, such as
infrastructure and climate change, which affect the health, safety, and
well-being of all Canadians.
National Engineering Week - Discover the Engineer in You
Between February
25 and March 5, youth across the nation are encouraged to "discover the
engineer" in them, during National Engineering Week (NEW), the annual
week-long celebration geared towards initiating young Canadians into the
engineering profession.
This year, more
than 500 National Engineering Week activities will be held in various communities
across Canada. Fun, interactive events like bridge building contests; robot
competitions and design contests will capture the imagination of 8-12 year old
students, prompting them to discover the engineer in them.
All events are
organized by Canadian engineering students, faculties, and the profession's 12
provincial and territorial engineering licensing bodies.
For a detailed
listing of what is taking place in your community, or for more information on
National Engineering Week, visit www.new-sng.ca
Software Human Resource Council's (SHRC) Expanding the Reach
Occupational Profile Development for the Hardware Sector
SHRC would like
to invite your participation in a $6.1 million national initiative. Since 1992
SHRC has worked with industry to develop and maintain an internationally
competitive software labour force. Its success has won federal funding to serve
the workforce needs of the hardware sector as well.
The industry has
benefited from:
Ø Fast-track immigration to meet urgent
skills shortages; and
Ø Comprehensive labour market information
(compiled quarterly by Statscan):
o
to target
regions where skills recruitment is most productive;
o
to help
manage labour costs with extensive survey data; and
o
to help
SME's with HR support tools.
To shape
education and training programs to meet changing company needs, we are
organizing a cross-country series of one-day working groups to help develop the
industry-wide job profiles that are a cornerstone of the Council's efforts. We
would like to invite your participation.
For more
information, please contact: