Aboriginal Relations
Our Aboriginal Relations Program encompasses the six key commitment areas of corporate leadership, employment, business development, education and training, community development and the environment.
Syncrude has a strong desire to be a good neighbour and invests in a great variety of Aboriginal community projects across the Wood Buffalo region. Since 2001, we have invested nearly $4 million for such purposes.
Recognition for Young Aboriginal Entrepreneurs – Brothers Derek and Cody Bruno received the inaugural Syncrude Aboriginal Youth Entrepreneur Award at the 2006 Alberta Business Awards of Distinction. The Brunos started their business, Cree Convenience & Peace Hills Pure Water, in 2001 on the Samson Cree Nation Reserve in Hobbema. They’ve since seen it grow to encompass customers in Edmonton and other locales having received a publicity boost from the award. Both are active in their community, mentoring youth and participating in civic politics.
Aboriginal Programs Reference Documents – Syncrude is one of several companies that have shared lessons learned in two new Aboriginal programs reference documents.
Learning from Experience, produced by the Alberta Chamber of Resources and sponsored in part by Syncrude, is a compilation of programs and practices of more than 80 enterprises working with Aboriginal communities in western and northern Canada. Nearly 4,000 copies of the report have now been distributed across Canada. With encouragement from Syncrude, the Chamber now plans to ask Aboriginal communities to share experiences and perspectives on their partnerships with industry.
For more information visit www.acr-aboriginalproject.org
Syncrude is also featured, along with the community of Fort McKay, as a case study in Building Sustainable Relationships: A Compendium of Leadership Practices in Aboriginal Engagement and Sustainability, published by Canadian Business for Social Responsibility. The book, encompassing corporate and Aboriginal experiences from across Canada and around the world, is meant to help foster “a deeper understanding for the shared responsibility of engagement between Aboriginal communities and the natural resource sectors.”
Job Preparation for Aboriginal Youth – Syncrude is continuing with its initiatives to improve future prospects for Aboriginal youth. Our employment and education programs include:
- The Fort Chipewyan Summer Student Work Ethics Program which places young people in summer jobs to introduce them to the world of work, community role models, and successful business projects. Syncrude has contributed approximately $70,000 to the program since 1998.
- The Fort McKay Summer Student Employment Program, which is designed to develop and instill career and life skills relevant to future employment.
- The Syncrude Aboriginal Scholarship Program, which has awarded $325,000 in scholarships to 170 Aboriginal students since 1989.
Rotational program participant Jeffrey Marcel and family in Fort Chipewyan
Fort Chipewyan Employment Program – Syncrude has expanded its rotational fly in-fly out employment program for residents of Fort Chipewyan. Ten new employees were hired in 2006, bringing the total number of participants to 17. Syncrude aims to have 21 program participants by spring of 2007. The program began in 1979 when Fort Chipewyan residents expressed a desire to work in the oil sands without leaving their home and community behind. Seven heavy equipment operators inaugurated the program, some of who still work with Syncrude today.
Tyrone Brass is the owner of Bayzik Electrical, one of the many Aboriginal businesses Syncrude works with each year.
A Billion Dollars for Aboriginal Business – Syncrude reached a significant new milestone in its relationship with Aboriginal businesses in 2006—more than a billion dollars spent on purchased goods and services over a 15-year period.
For 2006, we spent $132 million on 27 active contracts with Aboriginal firms representing all of the Aboriginal communities in the Wood Buffalo region. It’s the third straight year of more than $100 million worth of business for Aboriginal firms.
The Aboriginal Workforce – In 2006, Syncrude continued work toward our long-term goal of accurately reflecting the proportion of Aboriginal people in the Wood Buffalo population, between 12 and 13 per cent, in our own workforce.
At year-end, we employed 420 Aboriginal people directly—the highest level in six years—while many more were listed on the payrolls of our contractors. The aggregate total is consistent with our target. Overall, growth in Syncrude’s Aboriginal workforce has kept pace with, and in some cases exceeded, general workforce growth over the last ten years. For the last two years, attrition in Syncrude’s Aboriginal workforce has been below the workforce average.
Aboriginal employees comprised six percent of Syncrude leaders in 2006. While this increase in Aboriginal participation in Syncrude leadership is encouraging, Syncrude believes there is further room for improvement and we continue our efforts to develop potential Aboriginal leaders.
At the end of 2006, 116 Aboriginal people were employed in administrative, professional and technical (APT) positions, while another 304 worked in occupational areas. The APT figure represents about 5.2 percent of the total workforce in that segment, an improvement over previous years.
Syncrude recognized for Best Practices in Aboriginal Relations – At the 2006 Alberta Business Awards of Distinction, Syncrude received the Aboriginal Relations Best Practices Award, and was cited for outstanding achievements in Aboriginal relations, including economic development, employment and training, and Aboriginal community support.
Active Living Projects in Conklin and Fort Chipewyan – As part of the Conklin Community Association’s Recreation Revitalization Partnership, Syncrude has contributed $75,000 to build a community play structure. The structure will be centrally located and is expected to be the hub of a larger complex. Syncrude has also contributed $50,000 toward the construction of three community play structures in Fort Chipewyan in response to a need for safe playground environments where children can take part in regular physical activities; young people will take part in the planning of the facility.
2006 Aboriginal Review – The sixth edition of Syncrude’s Aboriginal Review, A Strong Sense of Direction, is now available. It celebrates youth, profiles success stories, and documents Syncrude’s activities and partnerships with the Aboriginal community in our six key commitment areas. The Review can be viewed at www.syncrude.com
Cookie Simpson, director of the Chip Childcare Society.
New childcare centre for Fort Chipewyan – Syncrude is the largest corporate supporter of a new childcare centre in Fort Chipewyan, providing more than $130,000 in financial resources. The funds were used to help construct the centre and also for supplies and equipment. The centre will provide care for the children of the families in the community, and will also provide a nurturing environment in which the children can learn and develop new skills. The centre held its grand opening in November.