Premier Doug Ford was on hand to announce the launch of construction on a training centre for crane operators in Oro-Medonte.
“We’re so proud to support your new, state-of-the-art training facility which will train another 1,600 workers [over the next five years] on this site,” Ford said during a press scrum on Tuesday. “You know, I have a fascination with excavators. I own a back hoe, so I might come by and get some training myself.”
Most of the cost for the $25-million project, which is expected to train 320 apprentices each year, is being provided by the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario and the International Union of Operating Engineers. About $5 million will come from Ontario’s Skills Development Fund (SDF).
“By delivering $5 million for this new crane operator training facility for over 1,600 workers [over five years] in Oro-Medonte, we are supporting job-seekers in the construction industry, supporting our local economy, and building a stronger Ontario,” added Attorney General Doug Downey during the scrum.
Since launching the SDF in 2021, the Ford government has spent about $1.4 billion hiring and training programs through its training stream and the construction of skilled trade training centres through its capital stream. During Tuesday’s event, Ford also announced the government would be committing another $74 million to the SDF’s capital stream.
“. . . this new round of funding through our Skills Development Fund capital stream will help thousands of additional Ontario workers find better jobs and bigger pay cheques,” he said.
Next year, the province expects about 50,000 skilled trade positions to go unfilled due to a lack of qualified candidates. According to the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development David Piccini, the shortfall is expected to be particularly acute in some of the construction-related trades, including in crane operation, carpentry and concrete forming. “Add on to that the fact that about one-in-three [journeymen] will be retiring in the next ten years, and you see why the problem is being exacerbated.”
He adds that this shortage is making it difficult for Ontario to press forward on its infrastructural improvement projects — especially in smaller towns. “Take my community as an example — Crystal Springs is trying to upgrade its water main, but last year, when the municipality put out the [project] for tender, it got no responses.”
Piccini adds that one of his top priorities has been figuring out ways to attract more young people to the trades. “The younger generation is — without question — spending more time in front of screen and engaging with new technology [than older generations]. The question is, how do you use technology to attract more of them into the trades?”
“As a public policy maker. . . its incumbent on me to leave no stone unturned.”
