With a need to boost the labour force in the trades, the province is investing over $364,000 to train 100 people in southwestern Ontario for millwright careers.
The funding announcement was made Thursday afternoon at Millwright Local 1592 in Sarnia.
MPP Monte McNaughton makes funding announcement at Millwright Local 1592 in Sarnia. June 15, 2023. (Photo by Natalia Vega)
Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development Monte McNaughton said there's currently a "huge" shortage of journeypersons in the province.
"One in three journeypersons today, for example, is over the age of 55 so today's announcement is really important, to partner with the millwright's union, to upskill and train 100 journeypersons and apprentices for jobs of the future," said McNaughton.
Participants will be trained and certified on four pieces of equipment such as boom lifts and elevating work platforms, forklifts, telehandlers, and scissor lifts.
The funding is also expected to allow Local 1592 to incorporate state-of-the-art equipment into their training curriculum.
McNaughton said the province is short about 72,000 skilled trades workers today and will be short 100,000 workers over the next decade.
"There are about 92,000 active apprentices in the province, there's a lot of momentum around the skilled trades, we're ending the stigma but obviously there's a lot of work to do," he said.
McNaughton said the province is pushing a message that people can earn big paycheques, benefits, and pensions through a career in the trades. Another message that's being pushed is the inclusion of females in the trades.
"I'm a girl dad myself, I have a nine-year-old daughter and one of the things I'm most proud of is that there's been a nearly 30 per cent increase in female apprenticeship registrations in the [last] 12 months," McNaughton said. "Women are actually leading the skilled trades momentum that we're seeing in the province."
Katrina Wynne, 21, speaks about her apprenticeship experience. June 15, 2023. (Photo by Natalia Vega)
Katrina Wynne, 21, spoke of her journey in pursuing a career in the trades during Thursday's announcement.
The Northern Collegiate graduate and level two millwright apprentice said prior to beginning her apprenticeship, she was a sales associate at Mackenzie Milne.
"I was nervous about starting my new career as an apprentice because I didn't know if I'd be able to keep up with the physical demands of the job but I became one because I love working with my hands and I also saw it as an opportunity to learn new skills and advance my career," she said.
McNaughton said the millwright trade is the fifth most popular trade in terms of apprenticeship registrations over the last 12 months.
Sarnia-Lambton MPP Bob Bailey was also on hand for the funding announcement and highlighted the beneficial work millwrights provide in the community.
"I've worked with a number of these people over the years," said Bailey. "It's just great having the minister here himself … It's the first of hopefully many announcements for Sarnia."
MPP Bob Bailey at Millwright Local 1592 in Sarnia. June 15, 2023. (Photo by Natalia Vega)
The investment announced Thursday is being funded through the Skills Development Fund.
Millwright Local 1592 services the areas of Lambton, Middlesex, Oxford, Huron, Perth and Bruce counties.