• Manufacturers offer career paths – not just jobs – for their employees, continuously investing in the education and skills of their workforce as a strategic part of asset management.
• Manufacturing is seen as a knowledge- and technology-intensive, global enterprise offering career opportunities in all aspects of business, from research, design, and engineering, the trades and production floor, information and other advanced technologies, to logistics, services, finance, and international business development, as well as some of the most challenging management jobs anywhere.
• Young people see manufacturing as a conduit to careers in the field of high technology.
• Manufacturing is a magnet for entrepreneurs.
• All Canadians see a prosperous manufacturing sector as vital to their economic well-being and standard of living.
• Communities, and Canada as a whole, are seen as a “better place to work and live”
• Businesses, labour groups, educational institutions, communities, and governments are aligned in their commitment and efforts to meet the requirements of a modern manufacturing workforce.

“Manufacturing should have the reputation as a “career place” and not just a “job place.”

“Beyond profitability, to fairness and safety, manufacturing companies should be seen as desirable career destinations.”

Challenges

• Public perceptions of manufacturing are badly out of date. Manufacturing is seen as a smokestack industry rapidly going out of business in Canada.
• Manufacturing is viewed in 4D – Dirty, Dangerous, Declining, and Depressing.
• Manufacturing jobs are viewed as manual, dull, dangerous, repetitive, and low-skilled, with low pay.
• Manufacturing is not viewed as a high-tech or knowledge intensive sector.
• Parents, teachers, and guidance councilors are not encouraging young people to think of vocational paths leading to careers in manufacturing.
• The educational and skills qualifications necessary for careers in manufacturing are not communicated well.
• Few career opportunities are seen outside major urban centres.
• Colleges are finding it difficult to attract high school students into their design, innovation, and technical skills programs for manufacturing, even though graduates from those programs go into high paying jobs.