If there’s one thing to take from the pandemic is that workers in the health care sector and in our schools merit more pay than they currently have. What could be more important than ensuring that our health and the education of our children meet today’s standards as modern industrialized countries? Yet, the pandemic and an aging population have resulted in tens of thousands of teachers and health care workers to leave or retire from their profession. The numbers don’t lie. Take for example in the U.S., where recent statistics highlight that there is a massive teacher shortage, particularly severe in several states and many localities. In Canada, the Canadian Nurses Association in a 2009 report predicted that Canada could see a shortage of 60,000 full-time nurses by 2022. The estimate is based on a number of factors, including retirement projections, but of course doesn’t account for the serious impacts of the pandemic.
What is more disconcerting is the fact that within the teacher shortage, there are certain disciplines which are critical to developing a new labour force in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Up until now, in both Canada and the U.S. immigrants continue to be a major source of STEM labour. In Canada, adult immigrants accounted for 44% of all individuals aged 25 to 64 with a university degree in a STEM field in 2016, compared with 24% in the United States. Can we continue to rely on immigrants to fill those job vacancies in high tech industries? The teaching profession has grappled with a labour supply issue in STEM for years. For example, according to a March 2022 report by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, over the last decade, the number of teaching degrees and certificates conferred fell 27 percent in science and mathematics education.
On top of which, there are places that serve economically disadvantaged students where they are more likely to have vacant positions. In lower income communities and in rural areas, school boards have a hard time attracting teachers to their schools. We know certain types of teachers are also hard to attract, in particular STEM teachers and special education teachers. As for special education teachers, the demand outpaces the supply. Parents with autistic children or those with learning disabilities have complained, and rightly so, for a number of years about the lack of special education support in schools. While something has to be done to encourage students enrolled in teachers’ colleges to become special education teachers, better pay and working conditions need to be promoted and implemented.
One of the things the pandemic has really shown the public is the value that nurses particularly bring to the health system. As a result, I would hope that people recognize the importance that nurses play in making sure we all have access to care. Interestingly, the media coverage during the pandemic did highlight the courageous acts by and commitment of nurses. As a result, nursing colleges have seen a recent increase in applications within both countries. However, burnout, wage competition with other sectors and early retirement has contributed to the current nursing shortage in the short-term. When compared to health care workers in general, nurses continue to be underpaid given the extensive degree of training and responsibilities they have.
As a modern society, one needs to take a close look at where our priorities lie. Everyone is touched by how well our health care and education systems work or don’t work. Following the consequences of the pandemic for our children and aging population, we need to get our priorities straight. This takes political and societal will and commitment to resolve these current specific worker shortage issues. This is not something that technology alone can resolve. These are people issues, requiring people solutions. Unfortunately, up until now, most jurisdictions have been unable or unwilling to adequately address these immediate and long-term challenges. I predict that within the next year, one will see this issue becoming increasingly a concern in both countries.
FROLITICKS 
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