RivCo to Help Construction Workers Find Canadian Jobs

The Board of Supervisors today voted in support of a program to help unemployed construction and trades workers in Riverside County find jobs in Canada, where there's a labor shortage.

Board Chairman John Tavaglione submitted the "Job Partnership Act
Canada,'' or JPAC, which calls for bilateral agreements between the county and
the Canada California and Canada Nevada business councils for the purpose of
identifying opportunities for displaced local workers to get hired for projects
up north.

According to a county Office of Foreign Trade statement, Canada is
plagued with "massive construction trades job shortages.''

"JPAC will feature opportunities for unionized and non-unionized workers alike who are interested in working in Canada on numerous legacy construction projects in various provinces,'' according to the statement.

The plan for a job relocation program was hatched earlier this year following a meeting between representatives from the California Canada Business Council and county officials, including Tavaglione and Supervisor John Benoit.

The unemployment rate in Riverside is at 11.8%, according to figures for May 2012.

On Feb. 11, the CCBC, a lobby representing business interests on both sides of the border, and the county entered into a trade pact intended to spur regional tourism and investments.

The cities of Las Vegas and Henderson, Nev., will be signatories to the
JPAC compact. According to Tavaglione's office, construction workers in the
Silver State have suffered job losses similar to those in the Inland Empire.

"It was decided the two regions could cooperate, rather than compete,
in assisting our trades men find work in Canada,'' according to the JPAC
proposal.

Job fairs will be organized in the coming months to inform workers about
prospects in Canada and how to go about obtaining credentials to work there,
county officials said.