On September 30, we honour residential school Survivors, the children who never returned home, and their families and communities. The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is a time to listen, learn and remember. It must also move us to act.
For Workforce Warriors and Canada’s Ocean Supercluster (OSC), economic reconciliation means building an economy in which First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples can pursue meaningful careers, exercise leadership and shape their own futures. Opportunity should not require setting aside culture, identity or community responsibilities.
The federal government has committed to implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action in partnership with Indigenous Peoples. Turning that commitment into lasting change requires governments, industry, Indigenous organizations and communities to work together-with Indigenous priorities guiding the work (Crown-Indigenous Relations Canada 2026).
Call to Action 7 calls on the federal government to develop a joint strategy with Indigenous groups to eliminate education and employment gaps. Call to Action 92 calls on the corporate sector to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a reconciliation framework. It calls for equitable access to jobs, training and education, long-term sustainable benefits for Indigenous communities from economic development, and free, prior and informed consent before proceeding with economic development projects. These responsibilities require coordinated action, not isolated efforts. (National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation 2026).
Our partnership offers one practical contribution through the Indigenous Career Pivot Program (ICPP). Led by Workforce Warriors, the current phase, ICPP 3.0, brings Indigenous-led workforce development together with OSC’s investment and industry network, alongside partners Clear Seas and the Information and Communications Technology Council. Together, we connect Indigenous talent with opportunities in Canada’s ocean economy.
ICPP is not simply creating space and place for Indigenous people in the workforce-it is demonstrating what becomes possible when Indigenous leadership, excellence and ways of knowing help shape the workforce itself. Through wage-supported employment, mentorship, cultural competency, tailored participant supports and employer readiness, ICPP builds an ecosystem designed for people not only to enter, but to belong, lead and advance. In doing so, it brings Indigenous knowledge and innovation to the forefront—strengthening workplaces and creating approaches to workforce development that can benefit us all.
This is workforce development, not simply recruitment.
In the first year of this phase, ICPP achieved 25 placements across eight industries, with an average salary of approximately $85,000. Women and gender-diverse people made up 60% of participants.
Those results demonstrate what becomes possible when Indigenous leadership, industry relationships and investment work together. But placement numbers are not the whole story. Success must also mean retention, leadership opportunities, employer accountability and benefits that Indigenous communities define for themselves. Employment cannot substitute for respect for Indigenous rights and self-determination.
The Government of Canada’s support through OSC has helped make this collaboration possible. Building on that foundation now requires a stronger, sustained commitment.
We call on the federal government, alongside provincial and territorial partners, to step up investment in Indigenous communities and Indigenous-led economic development. That means supporting Indigenous people and communities not only to participate in Canada’s economy, but to help shape it-as workers, leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, business owners and partners in development. Predictable, flexible, multi-year investment should build community capacity, strengthen Indigenous businesses and ownership, create pathways to meaningful careers and leadership, and support the relationships and infrastructure needed for long-term prosperity. Economic reconciliation requires more than opening doors to opportunity; it requires investing in Indigenous leadership, knowledge and innovation as part of Canada’s economic future.
Governments must also work with Indigenous partners to define success and measure progress. Employers must invest in respectful workplaces, meaningful career progression and pathways to leadership. Indigenous communities must have the resources and decision-making authority to shape workforce and economic opportunities around their own priorities-including employment, entrepreneurship, business development, ownership and community benefit. Collaboration means bringing these responsibilities together, not shifting them onto communities.
ICPP demonstrates a promising way forward. Our shared responsibility is to strengthen what works, learn together and create more opportunities without compromising Indigenous leadership.
This September 30, let us honour Survivors by making the Calls to Action part of the decisions we make, the partnerships we build and the resources we commit. Economic reconciliation requires more than agreement on a common goal. It requires the sustained support to reach it-together.
By: Workforce Warriors