By Alex Parsons
Canada’s mining industry is showing signs of stable economic upturn after several years of uncertainty. Still, challenges persist that must be solved to maintain stability and prosperity for years to come.
One of the biggest challenges facing mining is meeting forecasted labour supply requirements. According to the Mining Industry Human Resource Council’s (MiHR) 2019 Canadian Mining Labour Market Outlook, Canada’s mining industry will need to hire approximately 97,450 workers over the next 10 years. This report also indicates that while the share of new Canadians working in mining has steadily risen since 2006, their representation in the mining workforce was still lower than all other industries in 2016.
In collaboration with the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) and Professions North/Nord (PNN), and with funding provided by the Government of Ontario, MiHR aims to help tackle both of these challenges at once. Based on TRIEC’s existing Professional Immigrant Networks, MiHR launched its Mining Professional Immigrant Network (M-PIN) on Sept. 25, 2018.
M-PIN is an online and in-person social networking group that adapts, tests and evaluates innovative engagement methods to better integrate immigrant talent into the Ontario mining industry. The network aims to connect Ontario mining employers, internationally trained professionals and immigrant serving organizations to help support career development and supply the mining labour market with a diverse and skilled talent pool.
M-PIN’s online component runs as a subgroup of MiHR’s ENSEMBLE: The Mining Diversity Network. This free forum allows its members to create profiles, learn more about each other and network on issues related to diversity in mining. MiHR regularly updates ENSEMBLE with new events, blogs and discussion topics, while industry employers are also able to post job postings and start site-wide conversations. As M-PIN sits as a subgroup within ENSEMBLE, members also gain access to other benefits such as monthly webinars. M-PIN also offers training for human resource practitioners in the mining industry to better recognize, address and prevent potential barriers to employment.
“It’s been just over one month since M-PIN launched, but there’s already such a great community forming,” says Ryan Montpellier, MiHR’s executive director. “M-PIN is poised to positively impact the careers of internationally trained professionals and the Ontario mining industry.”
The network would not be possible without the help of TRIEC and PNN, two organizations MiHR has worked closely with from M-PIN’s inception. Both are key partners on the project, and help with the logistics and best practices of running a Professional Immigrant Network (PIN). These partners have also assisted MiHR with reaching the largest possible audience to ensure the widespread success of the network.
“We have helped internationally trained professionals (ITPs) enter the Ontario workforce since 2010, and we are very excited to work with MiHR to bring more to the province’s mining industry,” says Scott Fisher, PNN project manager. “We are confident that M-PIN will provide the training and resources necessary to bridge the gaps between employment experiences and culture that will help ITPs to succeed in mining.”
The network’s training program adapts TRIEC’s existing training modules, “Leading the Conversation”, to make them mining-specific, “Leading the Journey Towards Inclusion in Mining”. This entails focusing more on promoting diversity and inclusion, while following the steps to achieving success and other tested strategies. Through its training initiatives and social network, M-PIN will help employers help each other formalize inclusive human resources policies and practices to reduce barriers and increase opportunities.
“Ontario has a massive, but untapped immigrant talent pool that could greatly benefit several facets of the mining industry,” says Debroy Chan, director of immigrant inclusion strategies at TRIEC. “We are eager to support MiHR with their M-PIN project to better integrate immigrants into Ontario’s labour force by providing them with meaningful employment opportunities in the mining industry.”
M-PIN has established a strong advisory committee with representation from across Ontario, and its online presence is growing larger and stronger every day. Members and newcomers alike can look forward to the network’s upcoming webinars and in-person events. Two in-person meetups are planned for January 2019, with many more to come. There will be no shortage of chances for professionals to mingle, network and exchange job postings. While the network is currently limited to Ontario, there are plans to expand it to cover other provinces.
As expressed by Ryan Montpellier, “This is a big opportunity to make a real difference in strengthening and diversifying the talent pool for the Ontario mining industry.”
Visit www.mihr.ca for more information and email mihr@mpin.ca to sign up today.
