The idea that British Columbia is dealing with a shortage of skilled labour is not new. As early as the 1980s, construction and manufacturing firms began raising concern over the shortages of available trades and technical workers.

The Community Futures Development Association of BC and the BC Chamber of Commerce decided to combine efforts and investigate the issue of skills shortages and its impact on small business. Their goal was to connect directly with BC businesses, through focus group sessions and a telephone/web survey, to get their perspective on the issue and to engage them in the process of helping to develop potential solutions.  A broad cross section of the business community were asked to participate, and the mix of participants comprised of representatives from the following sectors:

The Southern Initiative involved a focus group session held in each of fourteen communities.  The findings of each session is detailed in the link of each location below:

Courtenay	Kamloops	Osoyoos
Cranbrook	Kelowna	Princeton
Duncan	Merritt	Sechelt
Fernie	Nanaimo	Squamish
Grand Forks	Nelson

The telephone/web survey produced over 1,300 responses from the southern, business community.

The Final Report produced from the information gathered, details the methodology of the project, the findings, issues and challenges, and recommended action.