[:en]Building Safer Trades in Saskatchewan: New, Free Training Program Breaks Down Barriers for Indigenous Youth
– Saskatchewan Building Trades and Saskatchewan Safety Council team up to provide free practical safety training –
Regina, SK – Looking for a job in the skilled trades? You need to have the necessary safety training and skills before setting foot on a job site. Saskatchewan Building Trades and the Saskatchewan Safety Council have teamed up to offer free online and hands-on safety training to prepare Indigenous Youth for opportunities that exist in the skilled trades.
“We know that over the next decade, Canada will be facing a skilled trades shortage. If we can break down barriers – such as access to training – we can create opportunities for underrepresented groups including women, Indigenous peoples, young people and New Canadians to look at a career as a welder, or a pipefitter, or any number of skilled trades, as a viable option,” said Dion Malakoff, Executive Director of Saskatchewan Building Trades. “Building Safer Trades is a program designed to work with educators who will then be able to pass on this training opportunity to their students, right in their own community.”
On Wednesday, August 28, the program will be launched at the initial Educators Workshop taking place from 9:30AM – 1:00PM, at the Treaty 4 Governance Centre in Fort Qu’Appelle, Siouox Ave South, Saskatchewan. Media are invited to attend, and are asked to confirm their attendance with Amanda LePine, Saskatchewan Safety Council (alepine@sasksafety.org)
“We are asking educators and students alike, to sign their commitment to complete the online portion of the training, which will then be followed up with the hands-on component, to increase our chances of success,” said Malakoff.
Building Safer Trades is a joint program between Saskatchewan Building Trades and the Saskatchewan Safety Council funded, in part, by the Union Training and Innovation Program of the Government of Canada. The program will kick off in the Regina-area in 2019, expanding over the next three years to include Indigenous communities in Saskatoon and Prince Albert.
Media Contact:
Kate Walsh
Canada’s Building Trades Unions
613-298-0652[:]
