CALGARY, ALTA. – The heads of trades training institutions will head up the new Skills for Jobs Task Force created by the province of Alberta to renew and expand its apprenticeship education and skilled trades opportunities.
Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) president Glenn Feltham and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) president and CEO David Ross will head government’s 19-member task force that will provide recommendations on how to best renew and expand apprenticeship education and skilled trades opportunities for Albertans.
“Over the last few years, we have seen a dual problem of rising youth unemployment and a wave of retirements in the skilled trades,” said Demetrios Nicolaides, minister of advanced education in a media release. “We need more young Albertans to pursue careers in the skilled trades and our government’s new Skills for Jobs Task Force will work towards that goal. More specifically, it will work to streamline training and credentialing, expand apprenticeship learning and work towards realizing the German model’s ‘parity of esteem’ between apprenticeship and academic learning.”
The goals of the task force will be to increase awareness of the value of skilled trades careers and strengthen enrolment in apprenticeship programs. It will also come up with ways to Raise the parity of esteem for apprenticeship education and expand the apprenticeship model of classroom education with on-the-job learning to other careers and occupations.
“Skills matter,” said Glenn Feltham, NAIT president and Skills for Jobs Task Force co-chair. “A skilled workforce is at the very heart of competitiveness and prosperity. And outstanding careers are built on skills. The Skills for Jobs Task Force will reimagine our skills and apprenticeship model. We will focus on reforming Alberta’s skills and apprenticeship system to expand opportunities and build parity of esteem between career options, including the skilled trades.”
The task force includes representatives from industry, labour, education leaders in both K-12 and post-secondary, and community agencies. It will submit a preliminary report in early 2020, followed by a full public report later in the year.
“The government’s ongoing support and focus on applied-education and skills development is critical for Alberta’s prosperity,” David Ross, president and CEO of SAIT, and co-chair, Skills for Jobs Task Force. “This task force will play a vital role in the renewal and acceleration of our province’s skilled workforce — bringing attention to the value of applied education and the careers and opportunities within skilled trades. Our work is to prepare learners for successful careers in the future and ultimately to provide industry the talent they need to grow our province.”
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