Ontario invests $440K in skilled trades programs for high school students

More than 2,000 high school students in Ontario will learn about careers in the skilled trades and technology with a $440,000 investment from the provincial government.

The project, led by not-for-profit Junior Achievement (JA) as part of its Building a Stronger Future student entrepreneurship program, will inform students about a variety of opportunities in the skilled trades.

Free activities and events will be offered virtually and in-person for high school students aged 15 to 18, including a province-wide virtual fair in October 2021 for students to learn about skilled trades and technology careers.

Also on offer is a 50-hour training program running from July 2021 to March 2022 for 800 students to acquire technical skills to help prepare them for careers in the skilled trades.

Another province-wide virtual event will be held in March 2022 for youth to demonstrate their new skills and connect with local industry mentors.

“This investment is part of our strategy to break the stigma that still surrounds working in the skilled trades,” said Monte McNaughton, minister of labour, training and skills development, in a statement.

“We need to show students and their parents that becoming a tradesperson – a carpenter, a plumber, or an electrician – can be as fulfilling as becoming a doctor, lawyer or an engineer.”

The funding is being drawn from Ontario’s $115-million Skills Development Fund.