Three local organizations are sharing more than $2.2 million to expand access to apprenticeship training in Windsor-Essex.
The provincial funding is going to Women’s Enterprise Skills Training (WEST) of Windsor, St. Clair College, and the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental, and Reinforcing Iron Workers.
Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development David Piccini, along with representatives from Skilled Trades Ontario, made the funding announcement Tuesday morning at St. Clair College.
WEST is receiving more than $1.56 million to train 60 women for careers in the industrial electrician, electrician construction and maintenance, refrigeration and air conditioning, sheet metal, and cement finishing trades.
St. Clair College is getting more than $641,000 to expand skilled trades training, while the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental, and Reinforcing Iron Workers is receiving $53,720 to purchase robotic surveying and monitoring technology.
Minister Piccini says the province is investing in skilled trades.
“Getting young people the hands-on experience they need is what it’s all about,” says Piccini. “So for too long, they were training on old equipment; that’s changing. For too long we weren’t supporting those pathways; that’s changing.”
The provincial funding is from the Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program and the Apprenticeship Capital Grant.
In a release, the province says, “These investments will expand access to apprenticeship training while ensuring training providers have the facilities and equipment needed to prepare apprentices for careers in high-demand sectors, including construction, manufacturing, and industrial trades.”
The release goes on to say, “Modernizing facilities and expanding access to the skilled trades is part of the government’s plan to protect Ontario by building a highly skilled workforce ready to meet growing demand and keep Ontario resilient into the future.”