Canada’s mining industry has long been a cornerstone of the Canadian economy, with mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction directly and indirectly employing 694,000 people and making up 7.8 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022.[1] Our nation is rich in the critical minerals needed to transition to a low-carbon, clean economy – however mining is facing labour market tightness caused by long-term social and demographic challenges that undermine industry’s ability to respond to growth, including:
- A growing age gap with rising retirements and fewer young people entering the industry.
- Declining educational enrolment, for example undergraduate mining engineering enrollment declined 50 per cent from 2012 to 2023.
- A low mining unemployment rate of 1.7 per cent in September 2024, compared to nearly seven per cent across all industries.
- Continued challenges in attracting and retaining underrepresented groups.
Demand for critical minerals and metals is rising due to their necessity in green technologies and for renewable energy. Furthermore, demand for other commodities like potash, uranium, oil and gas, and gold continues to create additional labour market demand. Juxtaposed with the factors accelerating a tight labour market, it is clear that the mining industry needs a developed, highly educated and skilled workforce. However, the perception of mining as an outdated and harmful industry continues to deter youth from considering mining careers.
In response to these challenges, the Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MiHR) launched the Mining Needs You career awareness campaign in 2021. Mining Needs You shows youth mining’s wide range of career opportunities; the need for mining; what modern mining looks like; mining’s use of innovative technologies; and industry commitment to environmental sustainability and equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Mining Needs You counters outdated perceptions of mining as an unsafe and dirty industry and focuses on attracting younger workers by highlighting how the industry has evolved and offers roles beyond traditional labour positions. As part of the campaign, MiHR introduced the five-year I Chose Mining. Mining Chose Me. Scholarship Program to provide 10 $2,500 scholarships to post-secondary students in mining-related programs. Now in its fourth year, the program recently awarded scholarships to two outstanding individuals: Catherine Condinho, undertaking a Bachelor of Science-Mining Engineering degree at Queen’s University, and Nur Erhalac, undertaking a Bachelor of Engineering, majoring in Mining Engineering Co-Op degree at McGill University.
Both scholarship recipients showcased their passion for mining and how they fell in love with the industry through their compelling video applications.
“My life has changed indefinitely for the better since pursuing a career in mining,” said Condinho. “I am so appreciative of MiHR, as their generous support will allow me to pursue my ambitions in this industry.”
Erhalac expressed that she is “truly honoured to receive this scholarship” and expressed her “heartfelt gratitude for this recognition. I haven’t always been certain about which career path to pursue, but when I discovered the mining industry, I knew it was the right fit for me.”
MiHR is now working to expand Mining Needs You. To begin, the Province of Alberta partnered with MiHR in 2024 to assess labour demand for 10 critical occupations in the province’s mining, oil, and gas extraction industries – and to use results from this analysis to inform implementation of mining career awareness initiatives in the province based on the Mining Needs You platform. As such, MiHR will be launching a social media video contest in January 2025 for post-secondary students enrolled in mining-related programs in Alberta – with one $1,000 scholarship prize available to be won. Contest details will soon be available on MiningNeedsYou.ca.
While these efforts in Alberta are a positive step, challenges facing Canada’s mining industry are national in scope. The future of Canada’s mining industry relies on a skilled workforce in every mining region across the country. Therefore, MiHR is facilitating sectoral collaboration through the creation of a pan-Canadian coalition that will work together to attract youth to mining education and employment to help deepen the labour pool available to companies to benefit from. In November 2024, the Mining Association of Canada’s (MAC) Board of Directors approved a funding request presented by MiHR to officially establish a coalition and expand the Mining Needs You campaign nationally for one year.
MiHR continues to seek partners to join the coalition and is now developing a project management plan that will include delivering traditional, digital, and industry-specific tactics; risk management, performance and change management strategies; and evaluating the coalition’s effectiveness to develop a proposal to extend the campaign an additional four years.
MiHR’s Careers Committee, made up of coalition partners, industry, education, and youth representatives, will provide project oversight, input, and guidance. An agency consultant will be selected to work in collaboration with MiHR and partner input to develop the project management plan and execute the implementation strategy. Partners will also be asked to provide in-kind contributions, including staff time, to review and promote materials and senior leaders delivering the coalition’s messaging to key audiences.
This collective effort will raise awareness and visibility of mining as a viable, rewarding career option.
Please contact William Meyer, director, communications and career development, MiHR, at wmeyer@mihr.ca to learn more about the coalition.
[1] The Mining Association of Canada, The Mining Story 2024: Canadian Mining Industry Facts and Figures, pg.1 & 2, https://mining.ca/wp-content/uploads/dlm_uploads/2024/06/Facts-and-Figures-2023-FINAL-DIGITAL.pdf
