Province increases spending on pre-apprenticeship programs
The Ontario government has bumped up its annual investment in pre-apprenticeship programs by a further $5 million, Labour Training and Skills Development Minister Monte McNaughton announced last week.
The increase brings the province’s total annual commitment to pre-apprenticeship training to a record $28 million.
The move, says the province, will provide more young people with the training they need to launch careers in the skilled trades. Between July and September 2021, there were more than 330,000 unfilled jobs in Ontario, many of which are in the skilled trades.
Pre-apprenticeship training programs are free for participants, combine classroom training with on-the-job learning, and play a crucial role in reducing Ontario’s skilled labour shortage.
There were 1,790 people enrolled in pre-apprenticeship programs from April 2021 to March 2022 across Ontario.
The province has also started negotiations with more than 50 training organizations to expand 98 pre-apprenticeship projects for current and future tradespeople.
“Ontario continues to face a generational labour shortage. To build a stronger Ontario and grow our economy we need all hands on deck. Every day, there are hundreds of thousands of paychecks waiting to be collected,” said McNaughton. “That is why our government is making historic investments in innovative programs that upskill workers and connect them to the careers of their dreams, without having to move to a big city.”
In the same announcement, the province said it will also soon finalize a second round of projects funded under the Skills Development Fund. The program, which is valued at more than $200 million, supports programs that connect job seekers with the skills and training they need to find careers.
The first funding round of the Skills Development Fund last year supported almost 150 projects, including many focused on the skilled trades, and helped 280,000 people around the province take the next step in their careers.
"It is essential that we create greater awareness of the skilled trades as a valuable career path for our youth. Programs that support early consideration and opportunities to explore the trades will ensure that we have the workforce of the future that we need,” said Melissa Young, CEO and Registrar of Skilled Trades Ontario.