).Rural and First Nations communities with smaller businesses have difficulty in recruiting skilled workers. Furthermore, few journeypersons in these communities makes it more difficult for companies and First Nations to qualify to hire and train apprentices. Even if small firms have one or a few journeypersons, these firms are limited in the number of apprentices they can take on because of journeyperson-to-apprentice ratio regulations. The smaller number of journeypersons in rural and First Nations communities means this barrier can be more of a problem for Aboriginal people (CLFDB, 1999; Cook Consulting, 2001; ).
Some studies (CLFDB, 1995) and key informants perceive that collective agreements may be an impediment to Aboriginal people entering apprenticeships (). Collective-agreement provisions
on seniority give preference to workers with more seniority, enabling these workers to take available apprenticeship spaces. These provisions also mean apprentices with less seniority are laid off first.
Some key informants also perceive that unions have not actively recruited Aboriginal people into their trades and industries (). One interviewee suggested
that, in trades in which union hiring halls supply the tradespersons, seniority provisions often place apprentices—Aboriginal and otherwise—at the bottom of hiring lists. He maintained that unions have resisted allowing Aboriginal apprentices
to circumvent seniority in order to find work (
). This barrier was also touched upon as part of a national consultation on innovation:
“It was suggested that Aboriginal people should be positioned as a solution to Canada’s skilled trades shortages. Participants stressed that labour union buy-in is essential to changing attitudes around issues, such as seniority, that may block access to apprenticeships and other skill development opportunities” (Industry Canada & HRDC, 2002, p. 27).