ADMINISTRATION 239 



Personnel Training and Development 



To properly carry out its diverse responsibilities, the 

 Department needs a variety of specialized staff. Many of 

 these specialists are employed widely in the public and 

 private sectors — engineers, accountants, computer tech- 

 nicians and administrative support staff — and can be 

 recruited from a large pool of qualified people. Others, 

 especially in the fields of fisheries research, management 

 and enforcement, require expertise not widely employed 

 elsewhere. The Department must therefore make a spe- 

 cial effort to ensure that adequately tramed personnel are 

 available. 



The most lengthy and advanced training is required by 

 fisheries research scientists. Many universities in Canada 

 and elsewhere offer the post-graduate degree programs 

 needed for these positions. And even more universities, 

 including three in British Columbia, offer bachelor 

 degree programs of the kinds needed by the fisheries biol- 

 ogists, biochemists and other specialists required by the 

 Department. Most universities offer post-graduate pro- 

 grams in natural resource studies that can accommodate 

 requirements for advanced training in fisheries. 



However, deficiencies exist at two other levels. One is 

 in training programs for technical support staff such as 

 fishery oflicers. enforcement officers and technicians; the 

 other is in professional training for fisheries managers. 



As I explain in Chapter 16, the fisher>- officers are the 

 Department's front line presence in the field, and their 

 responsibilities in resource management call increasingly 

 for specialized training. Yet in a review earlier this year, 

 the Director of National Enforcement in Ottawa reported 

 as follows: 



Generally speaking, there is very little con- 

 sistency in the type of training afforded the 

 fishery officer recruits across the country. By 

 and large there is very little formal training, 

 the exception being the extensive recruit 

 training program provided by Scotia-Fundy 

 and Gulf Regions and the Law Enforcement 

 Training, adopted by some regions and pro- 

 vided by RCMP, Regina. Most regions, fol- 

 lowing a short orientation program (2 to 3 

 weeks) provide the recruit with "on-the-job" 

 training only, generally conducted by local 

 supervisory personnel, who in many cases are 

 not qualified trainers. In more recent years, 

 some regions have provided workshops and 

 some training in specialized areas, but by and 

 large the programs now in effect are either 

 unsatisfactory or do not go far enough.'-^ 



I find it alarming that none of the colleges and institu- 

 tions in British Columbia provide adequate educational 



programs for fishery officers (though Malaspina College 

 is developing a program in fish culture, and the British 

 Columbia Institute of Technology is developing a general 

 resource management option). This contrasts sharply 

 with the number of technical training programs available 

 in forestry, wildlife and other natural resource fields. As a 

 result, most of the Department's recent recruits have 

 been trained in institutions in the prairie provinces or 

 Ontario, with obvious implications for their familiarity 

 with Pacific fisheries and the relevance of their special- 

 ized knowledge. I therefore recommend that — 



5. The Department should cooperate «ith one of the col- 

 leges or technical training institutes in British Colum- 

 bia to design and establish a training program suitable 

 for preparing fisherj' officers and technicians. 



Cooperating with the British Columbia Fish and Wild- 

 life Branch and other potential employers of fisheries 

 technicians might also be fruitful. The program could be 

 adapted to upgrade the training of experienced staff as 

 well as new recruits. 



Eventually, a well-rounded technical training program 

 could provide the basic training for fishery officers, and 

 for enforcement officers who would then undertake the 

 additional special training in enforcement. 



A recent study sponsored by the Department pointed 

 to the dearth of training programs of this kind in the 

 Pacific region and suggested a two-year program with 

 options for technical training in fish management, habitat 

 management, fish culture and related fields."' This study 

 and its detailed proposals offer a foundation for design- 

 ing and implementing one or more programs that would 

 close a significant gap in training facilities for fisheries 

 personnel. 



To train the specialized enforcement officers described 

 in Chapter 16, 1 recommend that — 



6. The DepartnK'nt. in cooperation with the R.C.M.P. 

 training scIuh)I in Regina, the Justice Institute of Brit- 

 ish Columbia or other appropriate institutions, should 

 supp«)rt the development of a strengthened enforce- 

 ment training program for fishery enforcement 

 officers. 



The study of fishery officer stafl^ing referred to above 

 identifies a number of related problems in recruitment 

 and career development. These should be considered in 

 the context of the budget and efficiency review of the 

 Department proposed earlier. 



The second deficiency — the lack of supplementary 

 training for professional fishery managers — is equally 

 urgent. With time, fisheries management will increasingly 

 demand professional training. University degree pro- 

 grams offer the requisite scientific preparation, but they 



