Province invests $43M in skilled trades education
The Ontario Government is giving skilled-trades training pathways a shot in the arm.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce and Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development Monte McNaughton announced the province has invested $43 million to expand provincial training programs to encourage more young people to pursue careers in the skilled trades.
"Ontario's demand for workers in the trades is on the rise, and we want to attract more young and talented people into the exciting and challenging world of trades," said McNaughton. "Becoming an ironworker or a sprinkler fitter should be as obvious as becoming a firefighter or a lawyer. Our government is committed to ensuring that all young people across the province have the resources they need to acquire the skills and knowledge they need to get good jobs."
The investments include:
- $5 million to Skills Ontario to increase awareness of the trades among elementary and secondary students;
- $17 million in the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program to send representatives to schools to provide high-school students with the opportunity to learn about work in the skilled trades, and train as apprentices while completing their high-school diplomas; and
- $21 million in Ontario's Pre-Apprenticeship Training program to give students and graduates exposure to a variety of good jobs in the skilled trades.
“We’re delighted that additional funding will focus on where it counts: helping early learners appreciate why the skilled trades are such a vibrant and worthwhile career choice,” said Karen Renkema, chair of the Ontario Skilled Trades Alliance. “With so many jobs opening up in the skilled trades, it’s about time the trades are seen as every bit as valuable as all other academic pursuits.”
In addition, the ministers announced the appointment of three industry leaders to advise on attracting youth to the trades. Appointed to the roles are Jennifer Green, director of competitions and young women’s initiatives at Skills Ontario; Adam Melnick, director of government and community relations for the Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers, Local 95 Ontario; and Andrew Pariser, vice-president of Residential Construction Council of Ontario.
The advisors will work with youth, educators, business, parents and other key partners as well as the Minister of Labour Training and Skills Development on how to reduce stigma and make the province’s 144 skilled trades a viable first choice for young people.
They will advise on increasing awareness of the skilled trades among elementary school students, starting in grade one, with a focus on grades seven and eight, and on making it easier for high school students to learn about the options in the trades and to begin an apprenticeship pathway while continuing to earn secondary school credits.
"There's a growing demand in the job market for skilled workers" said Lecce. "We want to help fill this labour shortage and mismatch with young women and men who can take on these meaningful and well-paid jobs. That is why we are continuing to position Ontario as a STEM leader for the next generation of workers."