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Letter to the Editor

Ontario Government Invests $2 Million for New Training Opportunities for Trades Careers

"A more highly skilled workforce is critical to Ontario's economic growth," Cunningham said. "By combining a college diploma with apprenticeship training, we are giving students a new opportunity to earn skills that lead to high paying jobs."

The new Co-op Diploma Apprenticeship Program will provide both apprenticeship certification and a college diploma in less time than it would generally take a student to complete both programs back-to-back.

Employers will also benefit from the new training by having access to more apprentices with a higher level of training.

"There's a steady demand for apprentice and certified cooks in Ontario, making the trade a popular career choice," said Chef Glen Gardner, chair of an industry committee.

A call for proposals has been issued to the province's colleges to develop curricula under the new model for the trades of cook and precision machining and tooling. The initiative will be later expanded to other skilled trades. Training sites will be chosen through a formal selection process to implement the two programs.

"The demand for skilled workers is increasing, and employers are looking for graduates with both academic learning and practical experience. The Co-op Diploma Apprenticeship Program will help attract more Ontarians to careers in the skilled trades," Cunningham said.

Since 2000, the Eves government has invested $120 million to revitalize the apprenticeship training system and double the number of new entrants into apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeship training is done in the workplace where an apprentice learns first hand from experienced skilled workers.

The Ernie Eves government recognizes that investing in the skills of workers is essential to economic growth and Ontario's leadership in the global marketplace. Ontario's apprenticeship training system currently serves 60,700 apprentices and 23,300 employers.

The 2003 budget announced a new model of Co-op Diploma Apprenticeship Program combining a college diploma and apprenticeship certification that will encourage more young people to consider skilled trades careers and provide employers with apprentices with a broader academic background.

Announced in the 2000 budget, the Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program helps potential apprentices develop their skills and experience to prepare to be hired as an apprentice.

The Journeyperson Updating Program provides older skilled workers with opportunities to keep pace with change in their industry to make them better teachers for apprentices in the workplace.

Ensuring that college training facilities keep pace with industry needs the Apprenticeship Enhancement Fund will invest $50 million over five years to help colleges update their equipment and facilities so that training remains current, and colleges have the capacity to train more apprentices.

The 2003 budget announced a $5 million investment in the successful TVOntario Lifelong Learning Challenge Fund to develop online training projects in partnership with employers with a focus on apprenticeship training.

The Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program helps students begin to train for an apprenticeship while completing their high school diploma. This year, the program will provide about 12,000 students in 71 school boards with experience in more than 80 skilled trades.

In the 2003 budget, the Ontario government proposed a refundable Apprenticeship Tax Credit for employers that would create jobs and increase the supply of skilled-trades workers, in key sectors of the economy such as construction and manufacturing.

The Apprenticeship and Certification Act was proclaimed on January 1, 2000 replacing legislation that had not been overhauled since 1964. Together, the new legislation and its regulations provide a more streamlined framework to attract new employers and emerging trades into the apprenticeship training programs, and encourage greater industry involvement in the system.

The 2003 budget also announced an investment in programs to help women obtain apprenticeships in skilled trades, and skills and jobs in the information technology sector.

The Apprenticeship Innovation Fund provides $5 million each year for five years to support the expansion of the apprenticeship training system to new skilled trades and helps to maintain high quality and consistent standards for training. Also, the government is continuing the Loans for Tools program, introduced in May 1998, that provides loans to new apprentices to help with the cost of buying tools.

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