If the professions likely to develop thanks to the electrification of transport are well defined, it is different for those whose future could be compromised by this phenomenon.
A report prepared for the Labor Market Partners Commission published earlier this week notes that there is a lack of data on the jobs that will be affected by the electrification of transport, whereas this question is important if we want to properly support the workforce in the transition.
Among the suggested courses of action, the report proposes the deployment throughout Quebec of training leading to an attestation of professional studies in electric vehicle mechanics. It also proposes the establishment of internships in companies to introduce students to the electric transport industry. It also suggests that companies be offered tools for the green transition of their workforce — workshops, online training, guides and skills self-assessment tools, for example.
From theory to practice
Other courses of action are aimed at those who have a college or university education. Thus, it is proposed to develop training courses for technologists, technicians and engineers working in the transport industry, “who would teach complementary notions to their profession, in order to make them more qualified in the fields of electricity, electronics, mechanics and informatics”.
Others concern more the teaching environment, such as the creation of training courses for teaching staff at the secondary, college and university levels which would give them practical and theoretical knowledge of the issues relating to transportation electrification.
“At first glance, it would seem that the electrification of transport does not lead to a dynamic destruction-creation of jobs [importante]but rather to a trend towards requalification and upskilling of the labor force which is already evolving in the sectors affected by this phenomenon (transport and industry, mainly)”, we write in the report.
“However, this assertion does not take into account the limited availability of the resources necessary for the green transition, a parameter which could nevertheless considerably influence employment, due to the profound reconfiguration it could impose on our economic activities”, we conclude.