Identifying the problem
Climate conditions
The Northern region of British Columbia has unfavorable climate conditions (Spooner et al. 2002). Most employees prefer to work in areas where climate conditions are favorable. According to the information given by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the region experiences unequivocal climate system. This problem is brought about by human activities in the region that include the locals releasing greenhouse gases by burning fossil fuels. The region also experiences negative agricultural practices and deforestation, all of which create climatic conditions that are unfavorable. According to reports such as the Fourth Assessment, further emission of the greenhouse gases is likely to increase because of technological development, economic growth and international cooperation. Such activities will surely increase the temperatures in the region significantly. In essence, temperature changes are always accompanied by precipitation changes. This means that there will be a faster rate of warming and an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme weather conditions. With such unfavorable climatic conditions, most people do not fancy working in the region when there are opportunities elsewhere where the climatic conditions are favorable. This problem has seen the region fail to attract employees.
Wildfires
Constant wildfires in B.C’s Northern region are a source of concern. Not only do they destroy property worth billions of dollars, they have facilitated the issue of evacuation alerts and orders. The Mount McAllister fire incidence, for instance, prompted evacuation order for more than 1100 people to move from their settlements (Spooner et al. 2002). The government urged the residents to move to Fort St. John, an 80 km trip. Such conditions are unfavorable to employees as they are live in fear. It also becomes difficult for them to invest. As such, most employees prefer to work in different places where they feel secure.
Demographic aging
The demographic factor also affects the availability of employees in the Northern region of British Columbia. A good example of this is the fact that people tend to retire aged 50-55 years. This is facilitated by the good pension plan that the government has implemented. Apart from the usual way of saving the retirement money, the government has introduced a new mechanism through which employees save money. This is facilitated by the Pooled Registered Pension Plans (PRPPs) which are more favorable. Because such plans are effective and efficient, most people tend to retire at an early age in order to enjoy their retirement benefits. This is a big blow as the area is deprived off its skilled and experienced personnel. It becomes difficult to replace such personnel. Because of this, the Northern region has faced serious challenges on its employment sector (Spooner et al. 2002).
Opportunities in other areas
Because of the demand for human labor, B.C experiences a shortage of employees as more organizations seek to increase the number of employees (McDavid et al. 2008). This results in a competition where the employees choose where they will receive better treatment and favorable environment. The availability of employment opportunities and positions in neighboring areas that are safer has seen more people move out of the region. Because of its unfavorable economic situation, the Northern region cannot compete with other regions in terms of offering better facilities and conditions for the customers. This has meant that more and more people prefer working abroad. To make matters worse, some of these people get their basic training and skills in the region, before moving out to seek greener pastures.
Specific jobs
The Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations, can only offer specific jobs to the society (McDavid et al. 2008). In such cases, employees willing to work with the ministry may are always ignored because they do not have the required skills or potential to handle the available jobs. The demanding nature of this has seen the sector outsource for human labor from other regions. Because of this lack of opportunities, the semi-skilled locals move out to look for jobs that suit their skills. At times, the ministry has faced the challenge of attracting foreigners to work in its sectors. This has led to a number of positions remaining vacant and unoccupied.
Private Sector
The private sector has played a role in employing the few locals available in B. C. Because of the better terms and conditions that the private sectors offer to employees, few workers would prefer the public sector over the private sector. Operations in public sectors are always rigid and unfavorable. When compared to the terms and conditions in the private sector which are more favorable and tailor-made, the public sector fails to compete for employees. This has been a major challenge that the Ministry of Forests; Lands and Natural Resource Operations has faced. As at the moment, the ministry is yet to fill its positions because it lacks enough personnel. Employees also tend to have a negative reputation about jobs in the public sector (McDavid et al. 2008).
Jobs by other companies
There are several companies in BC that offer similar jobs to those of the ministry. This sparks competition for employees between the companies. To have an advantage, companies tend to offer better terms to attract employees. The rigidity of public institutions, however, makes it difficult for Ministries to alter their restrictions for competition purposes (Bunnell et al. 2004). This sees them lose out.
Wage restriction/Lack of additional benefits
Government restrictions make life difficult for employees to take jobs in the public sector. British Columbia, for instance, rarely revises its wages. As such, employees are poorly paid. This is a major source of discouragement; leading people to move out to find better terms. Employees in government jobs also lack additional benefits. This makes it difficult for them to attract employees.
Solutions
- New Ways of Hiring
In mitigating the employment vacancies that the ministry in B.C faces, it should seek to tap High School students. In most cases, students are eager to get employment opportunities to become independent. The ministry may decide to pay cater for their school fees in order to attract them further. The students should then be introduced to the ministry’s operations as early as possible to ensure they integrate into the system.
Looking out for new people
One of the problems that the ministry has faced is that of offering specific jobs. In such a case, willing employees who lack necessary skills for a specific job fail to secure the job. The ministry can mitigate this through offering relevant courses about the specific jobs to the willing workers. This way, it will have high chances of retaining employees as they will feel being part and parcel of the ministry.
- Human Resource Planning
Planning is an essential move in ensuring the success of an organization. Organizations should define what they intend to accomplish within a given time frame and how this will be achieved. After this, they should ensure they implement the relevant mechanisms through which they can achieve this. The ministry should ensure it employs this mechanism to get employees to fill the vacancies available
- Job Analysis
Job analysis is an important move to mitigating foreseeable challenges in employment. This is the only way the ministry can prepare job specifications and descriptions. This is crucial as it helps hire a workforce that is of the right quality into an organization. Although the ministry faces employment challenges, it should never hire unqualified candidates with the aim of filling the positions. Quality is essential.
- Expand their search
In essence, the ministry may also decide to hire from foreign regions in order to get candidates that are qualified. When doing so, it is important to use agents to tour the world and get qualified personnel. This is effective in that there are several workers out there who lack employment opportunities.
- Posting jobs on big portals
Criteria for job selection/Marketing of the forests and the job requirements
Most potential employees are always discouraged by employment sequences of organizations. Some often feel discriminated upon, preferring to look for other opportunities. This is mostly common in government organizations. To end this, the organization should clearly spell out its job selection criteria. This way, qualified individuals will forward their application letters with the aim of securing a job. The organization should also market the forest sector and the required credentials to secure a job.
References
Bunnell, F. L., Campbell, R. W., & Squires, K. A. (2004). Conservation priorities for peripheral species: the example of British Columbia. Canadian Journal of Forest Research-revue Canadienne De Recherche Forestiere. doi:10.1139/x04-102
McDavid, J. C., & Huse, I. (2008). Findings from a five year study of legislator uses of performance reports in British Columbia.
Spooner, I. S., Mazzucchi, D., Osborn, G., Gilbert, R., & Larocque, I. (2002). A multi-proxy holocene record of environmental change from the sediments of Skinny Lake, Iskut region, northern British Columbia, Canada. Journal of Paleolimnology. doi:10.1023/A:1021689328179
