Ukrainian wait to board a train to Poland, outside the train station in Lviv, Ukraine earlier this week. About 2 million people have fled the country since Russia invaded two weeks ago.
Canada’s automotive supply industry is offering jobs to Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s invasion of their country.
Flavio Volpe, head of the Canadian Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association (APMA), issued the call in a tweet posted Thursday morning, telling refugees seeking security to reach out to his organization.
“There is a proud heritage of Ukrainians in automotive in Canada, so we said, ‘let’s go,’” Volpe said in a phone interview with Automotive News Canada. “We’ve got more than a few board members who have said, ‘we need people. If you want to be active here, and invite these people, we will activate our [Human Resources] departments to respond to match-making.’
“So we put it out there.”
Volpe said even before his public callout, seven members — from Windsor, Ont. to Vaughn, Ont. — reached out to the APMA unsolicited, saying they could hire Ukrainians immediately.
He said despite the fact the APMA has its own programs that partner with the government “about onboarding people from vulnerable communities,” and its own digital learning platform, its members are still staring down a labour shortage.
More than 700,000 Canadians working in skilled trades alone are set to retire by 2028, according to a recent report by RBC. Statistics Canada in February reported that there were 73,900 vacant positions in manufacturing in December.
“We have a labour shortage,” Volpe said. “We still don’t have enough Canadians to fill the jobs we have.
"We’re ready to train people."
Volpe said hiring Ukrainian immigrants doesn’t require any new program or resources in either the privater or public sector.
“The immigration rules are what they are, and they allow for very short integration where there are shortages.
Volpe said he and his members are spreading the message through "our partners at Global Affairs, Foreign Service and through the Trade Commissioner Service." They’re also reaching out to members of Parliament.
“A lot of people who built the Canadian auto industry came from Eastern European and work with their hands, were entrepreneurs,” Volpe said.
He said they “can immediately relate” to the current situation.
Linamar Corp., headed by Linda Hasenfratz, is one of those executives and one of those companies.
It said earlier this week that it will work with the Canadian Ukrainian Foundation to sponsor Ukrainian refugees to come to Canada and provide them employment at the global supplier, based in Guelph, Ont.
“Our founder Frank Hasenfratz left Hungary in 1956 after having taken up arms as a freedom fighter in Hungary,” the company said in a statement. “In honour of his life and the Ukrainian people, Linamar Corp. is matching donations made by our employees to the Canada Ukraine Foundation (CUF) in support of the humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.”
General Motors Canada says it will match employee donations made to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation, up to $20,000.
“We know many GM Canada employees have been personally impacted by the conflict, as Canada has the 3rd largest Ukrainian population outside Russia and Ukraine,” the automaker said in a statement.
General Motors in the United States is responding to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine by making a $250,000 dollar grant to The International Rescue Committee.
Meanwhile, Unifor, the union representing thousands of Canadians in the auto parts and assembly sectors, has donated $150,000 to support the Red Cross.
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said Wednesday that Canada is working closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees throughout eastern Europe to find ways to get refugees to Canada after negotiating safe passage agreements. She said International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan was talking to the UN refugee agency to co-ordinate Canada's response.
“These conversations are happening,” Joly said. “But at the same time, we need to do things well.”
Already, more than two million refugees have fled Ukraine — with more than half heading to neighbouring Poland — and even more expected to arrive in the days ahead. Poland has taken in nearly 1.5 million refugees since Russia invaded Ukraine last month.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who is of Ukrainian descent, said when she sees the images of the carnage coming out of Ukraine, “I have to stop looking at them.”
The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
