Ontario must address crippling shortage of apprentices

Rewarding careers in technology and the trades are waiting for people who can get the right training

Whichever party forms the next government in June must address the skills shortage that is crippling the economy.

The challenge facing employers is well documented. Last year, the Ontario Skilled Trades Alliance said up to 41 per cent of the employers it surveyed would hire more people if they had the right skills.

More broadly, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce issued a report last year that said more than 60 per cent of its members couldn’t find qualified people to fill vacant positions and many of the challenges are in the skilled trades.

The government can take a number of steps to close the skills gap, but one of the most important ones will be transforming apprenticeship training.

Ontario simply isn’t producing enough apprentices. Apprenticeship training in Ontario doesn’t get the respect it deserves as a post-secondary option, and the province should be doing more to encourage students who are interested in technology and the trades to pursue apprenticeship programs.

A key reform will be fixing the convoluted process for enrolling in apprenticeship training.

Currently, there is no clear entry route into apprenticeships. Someone who’s interested in becoming an apprentice has to find a willing employer, and many people don’t have those connections or know where to look.

It shouldn’t be so complicated. At a time when Ontario desperately needs more skilled people, applying to be an apprentice should be as simple as applying to college or university.

Fortunately for Ontario’s next government, there is an available solution that can be quickly implemented. Ontario can offer a one-window application process that’s easy to use by expanding the colleges’ provincial application service to include apprentices.

The college system’s application website, ontariocolleges.ca, gets more than 3.5 million hits each year and more than 200,000 applications are processed annually for full-time college students. Applications, transcripts and fee payments are processed quickly and effectively and the confidentiality of each student’s application is protected.

Colleges currently handle 85 per cent of the in-class portion of apprenticeship training in this province and could partner with unions that are interested in using the service.

Expanding the college application service to include apprentices would allow students to submit applications before they have secured a willing employer. Colleges could use their strong connections with employers to match apprentices with employers.

As well, the centralized and highly visible application service would allow apprenticeship training to be vigorously promoted in high schools and among parents, teachers and guidance counsellors.

At a time when Ontario desperately needs more skilled people, applying to be an apprentice should be as simple as applying to college or university. LINDA FRANKLIN

There are many rewarding and wellpaying careers in technology and the trades just waiting to be filled. And many people who would love to do that work if they could get the right training.

The province needs to build on the success of initiatives such as the ESTATE program at Mohawk College, a partnership with industry that provides highlevel training to high school graduates under 30.

Ontario can develop a more highly skilled workforce. I would urge every candidate in the provincial election to endorse the colleges’ proposals to produce more apprentices.