Industry Experts to Join Forces to Address the Shortage of Trained Automotive Technicians

    ALBANY, N.Y.--May 20, 2002--Delmar Learning, a leader in educational resources for lifelong learning and part of The Thomson Corporation , today announced it is hosting the first annual recruitment and retention summit in Newport Beach, California on May 21 and 22, 2002.
    Delmar Learning is a leading provider of training products and services for automotive technicians and has initiated a forum for automobile manufacturers to join forces to solve the vicious circle of recruiting, training and the inevitable departure of the technician. Leaders from original equipment manufacturers including Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Toyota will be in attendance to work together to address these critical issues.
    Over the two-day summit, Delmar Learning will bring together the directors of training, curriculum development managers and technical training program directors in a non-competitive, mutually advantageous forum to begin developing a solution to this industry-plaguing issue. Opening the session will be a presentation from industry experts mapping out the challenges ahead. The remainder of the summit will include round-table discussions and solution formulation on demonstrating return for training dollars, and recruitment and retention.
    Greg Burnell, president and CEO of Delmar Learning comments, "The Department of Labor has reported that over the next ten year period, the industry will experience a 35,000 technician shortage annually. This is a critical customer issues, and we're hoping this summit will provide an opportunity for industry leaders to come together to determine what can be done to address the growing shortage. As a learning solutions provider for the automotive industry, Delmar Learning is anxious to assist in the resolution of these issues."

    About The Thomson Corporation and Delmar Learning
    The Thomson Corporation (www.thomson.com), with 2001 revenues of $7.2 billion, is a leading provider of integrated information solutions to business and professional markets worldwide. The Corporation's common shares are listed on the Toronto and London stock exchanges . Its learning businesses and brands (www.thomsonlearning.com) serve the needs of individuals, learning institutions and corporations with products and services for both traditional and distributed learning. Delmar Learning (www.delmar.com and www.delmarlearning.com) is part of Thomson Learning and a leading provider of lifelong learning products and services for the health care, technology and trades, and career education markets. Delmar Learning's market-leading imprints include Autodesk Press, OnWord Press, Singular Publishing Group, Milady and West Legal Studies.