Over 2.7 Million Canadian Workers to Face ‘Significant’ Disruptions in Sectors Impacted by Future Climate Change Programs: Report

Over 2.7 million Canadian workers will face “significant” disruptions in sectors that will be affected by future federal climate change programs, says a memo previously sent to Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, according to a report.

“The transition to a low carbon economy will have an uneven impact across sectors, occupations and regions and create significant labour market disruptions,” reads the memo titled “Key Messages On Just Transition” and sent to the minister on June 1, 2022. The document was obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter.

The document said that about 1.4 million workers in the building sector and 642,000 in transportation would be impacted, as well as 292,00o workers in the agriculture sector, 202,000 energy workers, and 193,000 in manufacturing.

Wilkinson said in early January 2023 that the federal government will be looking to move forward with its “just transition” legislation this year, which is intended to help workers in Canada’s oil and gas sector move into green energy jobs.

Wilkinson said the transition between sectors will create more jobs, but the memo said some green energy sector jobs, such as being an “environmental impact assessor,” will require “extensive” knowledge about the field—making a move from oil and gas work difficult.

Other jobs will require only “some green skills,” such as being a sales representative for green air conditioning units, said the memo, while other jobs will require no green skills at all.

“Some green jobs will not require workers with green skills to perform their jobs, i.e. janitor or driver working for a solar energy company,” the memo said.

Jobs At Risk

The memo also posed a question asking how many workers in the oil and gas sector would lose their jobs as a result of “Canada’s climate change actions.”

“The answer to this question depends,” read the answer, adding that not “every job that exists in today’s economy has a perfect twin in a net zero economy.”

“It’s not to say the transition will not be accompanied by change and uncertainty for some workers and communities where the labour force requirements of the future will differ from those of today.”

The memo came about two months after Environment Commissioner Jerry DeMarco wrote in an April 2022 audit that the federal government is “unprepared” to transition oil and gas workers into low-carbon jobs without putting many out of work.

“The audit found that there was no federal implementation plan, formal governance structure, or monitoring and reporting system in place to support a just transition and that supporting legislation has been delayed,” said DeMarco’s report.

Wilkinson said on Dec. 1, 2022, that he read DeMarco’s report and that the federal government would take it into account in an updated plan in 2023.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said on Jan. 10 that the proposed federal “just transition” legislation is a “big threat” to Alberta’s oil and gas sector.

“When I hear the words ‘just transition,’ it signals eliminating jobs,” she said.

The premier earlier said the province would focus on growing its low-carbon economy and technology while maintaining its oil and gas sector.

Marnie Cathcart contributed to this report.