British Columbia rolling out training program to address job shortages
 

But will it be enough?

Aw F.R.A.P.

This seems directly oriented at people who need assistance either going into or completing post-secondary training. You know, "normal" people.

If you are like me where you have nearly 15 years of demonstrable and hands-on materials/equipment experience but are not able to complete any level of post-secondary because of the grades or a learning disability, then the reality is most of us who don't have financial momentum right out of highschool are still screwed to do crappy unskilled/semi-skilled jobs for $20/hr and I can count the number of friends with two hands and still miss people I know who this relates to.

It is obviously good new that the province is investing funds into the skilled trades but training them and keeping them are two very different things.

BC currently has a natural decline in population........more people are dying than being born and we have a net negative interprovincial population flow. Only mass immigration is stopping the province from shrinking. This is not because the crime rate went up 10 fold, the mountains disappeared, or the climate has changed to Inuvik levels but due to one reason and one reason only...........these young and newly trained people can't afford to live here.

My 28 year old nephew makes a decent wage but lives in a tiny apt and has to live hand to mouth. His father is a super nice guy and loaded but he doesn't want to live off charity and his financial goals are not to bear it out waiting for his father to drop dead and hence is seriously thinking about, like all young people, moving to Calgary.

Victoria could give away Ph'Ds to every one in the province but if they still can't afford to live here they will leave and who could blame them?

If you rent, like almost all young people do, the cost of living in the outer suburbs of Vancouver is comparable to Calgary. Surrey is a bit cheaper than Calgary, New West is quite a bit cheaper than Calgary. Myself, I would much rather live in New West, which is comparable to the Beltline, and have a Vancouver at my disposal, than live in boring Calgary. There are options to moving to a super boring city.

I would not say Calgary is boring nor undesirable. Edmonton certainly qualifies but not Calgary. Vancouver used to love saying it's "The Best Place on Earth" and quoted all those studies that ranked it so high but now you hardly hear about those rankings as Calgary has passed Vancouver and now sitting at #3. Vancouver is also hardly a city to talk about another one as being boring. It didn't get its nickname of "no fun city" for nothing.

Yes, Calgary rents are rising but still much cheaper than Vancouver and the big difference is that it doesn't take one an average of 25 years just to save up for the downpayment little alone being a debt slave for the rest of your life. Remember that everything in Calgary is significantly cheaper than Vancouver and yet they have much lower taxes with much higher wages. The facts speak for themselves, BC & Vancouver have a net-negative population rate and only immigration is helping the province from shrinking while supposedly boring Calgary is booming with Canadians moving into Alberta. It's not that people all of a sudden hate BC and love Alberta but if you can't afford to live there then it means squat.

There may be a sale on Porches but if you can't afford one in the first place, then it's irrelevant no matter how many bells & whistles they add.

The 'Best Place on Earth' branding was BC - not Vancouver. It's been dropped for years - it was a Gordon Campbell era claim.

2023’s Economist Intelligence Unit Global Liveability Index: The top 10

1. Vienna, Austria

2. Copenhagen, Denmark

3. Melbourne, Australia

4. Sydney, Australia

5. Vancouver, Canada

6. Zurich, Switzerland

7. Calgary, Canada

7. Geneva, Switzerland

9. Toronto, Canada

10. Osaka, Japan

The cost of Calgary's lower prices is having to live in Calgary - in terms of infrastructure, fun and amenities, it's effectively a watered-down Vancouver (and one oil slump away from not even being that).

Getting back on topic, it seems obvious the program only covers jobs the province thinks it needs. The healthcare sector is understaffed after the pandemic exodus, and the film and tech sectors need a boost, but neither appear to be covered.

I think it is great news that BC {and basically all the other provinces as well} are finally starting to realize that post-secondary doesn't just mean university and you are still "uneducated" even if don't have couple of letters behind your name. The college diploma still has a stigma but that is starting to change although the mentality of the school boards are still a barrier.

I have nothing but kudos for BC's new program.

This has literally nothing to do with the thread.