Apprenticeship training has long been a key strategic initiative at the International Foundation. Over the years, we’ve engaged in a number of partner initiatives with the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum (CAF-FCA), and in mid-June International Foundation staff members, including myself, traveled to Montreal to attend the CAF-FCA National Apprenticeship Conference.
Have you ever looked back at your high school years and wished that some of your course work had been a bit more practical? Apprenticeship program stakeholders are aware of these issues and have been incorporating life skills into their curricula for years.
Registered apprenticeships are structured training programs, combining on-the-job training with extensive technical instruction in a highly skilled occupation. Currently there are more than 505,000 active apprentices in the United States and 450,000 in Canada, and the system plays an essential role in the development of a highly trained workforce.
This new report provides an up-to-date analysis of U.S and Canadian apprenticeship programs including the challenges faced by programs and apprentices, recruitment and retention initiatives, life skills training opportunities, program communication strategies and more.
A survey of over 2,800 former apprenticeship students in British Columbia demonstrates that the completion of trades apprenticeship training overwhelmingly leads students to well-paying jobs. “Completing an apprenticeship is a great investment for students,” said Advanced Education Minister Andrew Wilkinson. “Our government has been targeting investments in new trades-training equipment, facilities and additional in-demand trades seats to ensure that students have the skills they need to become part of the work force that British Columbia will require.”
"A skilled, mobile and certified skilled trades workforce is built upon high quality apprenticeship training systems," reads the 2016 budget. "Apprentices work and learn in a variety of settings, including on-the-job, at colleges and polytechnics, and through union-based training centres."
The new Foundation survey report found apprenticeship programs in the U.S. and Canada are starting to offer more than just extensive skill instruction as part of training. Nearly 60% of apprenticeship programs are looking beyond the job title of Electrician, Carpenter, Plumber or Construction Craft Laboror, and offering life skills training as part of the apprenticeship curriculum, with an additional 20% considering adding the training.
A new report by Job Talks and Q.I. Value Systems Inc. contends that behavioural causes are a major contributor to the gap between the demand for skilled construction labour and its supply of young workers. A behavioural economics (BE) approach can improve the understanding of many of these recruitment issues, and help reinforce opportunities to attract new entrants to skilled construction work.
As the demand grows for skilled labour throughout the GTA, this report provides a better understanding of issues facing workers in the residential and infrastructurerelated trades and recommends ways of retaining them. More than 400 construction industry workers across 10 categories participated in the study.
"Using social media for your apprenticeship program is all about talking to your target audinces - and people who are new to a program are the absolute best people to be talking to," says Joann M. Pineda, chief executive offcier and chief troublemaker for Matrix Group International, Inc., in Arlington, Virginia.
Changing demographics compounded by evolving codes, standards and legislative requirements in the construction industry heighten the need for a skilled, trained labour force. At a high school in Windsor, Ontario, the Ontario Masonry Contractors’ Association teamed with high school, college and industry players to create an innovative masonry program that could serve as a model for other trades and provinces. By Sandra Skivsky.
Already struggling to replace retiring tradespeople, apprenticeship programs expect recruiting and retaining apprentices to continue to be a challenge. However, these programs are engaged in a variety of key recruitment and retention initiatives and predict a positive hiring outlook in their industry in the next two years, according to a recent International Foundation survey. By Justin Held, CEBS
This new report provides an up-to-date analysis of U.S and Canadian apprenticeship programs including the challenges faced by programs and apprentices, recruitment and retention initiatives, life skills training opportunities, program communication strategies and more.
The authors believe a relatively small adjustment in how instructors teach technical skills to apprentices might help apprentices reach proficiency more quickly and efficiently. By Mark L. Johnson, Ed.D., and Jeanea M. Lambeth, Ed.D.
Apprenticeships, a proven path to middle- and high-skilled careers, should be built on the skills employers need and use effective mentoring, according to Nicholas Wyman
Apprenticeship completion rates continue to lag behind increases in construction employment and apprenticeship registrations. An Ontario Construction Secretariat study of apprenticeship in Ontario’s construction industry explored the role of joint union-employer partnerships in apprenticeship training and their impact on apprenticeship outcomes.
Case Studies
Hammer Heads is a 12-week boot camp-style employment program that targets youth living in priority and underresourced communities in Toronto. Since 2010, 194 Hammer Heads graduates have started registered apprenticeships in the construction industry, and 58 youth have been removed from social assistance for an estimated savings of $904,449 so far.
It's not uncommon for a fifth-year apprentice, now earning close to journeyman wages, to show up for work in a brand-new pickup truck. But apprentices often don't realize they may not be employed for the full year and that making monthly truck payments could become tough. By Chris Vogel, CEBS.