The B.C. government has announced partnerships with five organizations from around the province to find the best way to get more women enrolled into trades.
Funding of more than $485,000 will be used in the Labour Market Partnership to carry out a variety of studies regarding local work force needs.
These projects include the Working Options for Women survey in Trail and the West Kootenays as well as posts secondary training opens in the North Fraser.
The following five organizations are receiving partnership funding:
Greater Trail Skills Community Skills Centre: $49,000
Regional District of Central Okanagan/Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission: $104,970
District of Maple Ridge/Invest North Fraser: $110,900
St’at’imc Government Services: $110,000
Iskut Band: $110,840
The following Labour Market Partnerships will provide information to individual community organizations on where gaps can be filled in the employment market or in education.
- Greater Trail Skills Community Skills Centre:
- A report will be written that includes strategies to better support women in non-traditional jobs to help address the growing shortage of workers in the resource and trades industries in Trail and the West Kootenays. The report will also summarize the participation rate of women in non-traditional jobs, as well as the best ways to encourage the recruitment of women into the trades. The Working Options for Women: Supporting Women in Non-Traditional Resource and Construction Sector Employment study will take 33 weeks and will wrap up on March 13, 2015.
- Regional District of Central Okanagan / Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission:
- Provincial partnership funding: $104,970
- The study, Growing in the Okanagan - 2020 Labour Market Outlook, provided information on labour and training needs over the next five years in the North and Central Okanagan and Okanagan-Similkameen, finding that employers in the region expect to hire more than 75,000 people in that time frame.
- District of Maple Ridge/Invest North Fraser:
- Provincial partnership funding: $110,900
- The North Fraser Labour Market Research Steering Committee has awarded a contract to R.A. Malatest & Associates Ltd. to research and assess the North Fraser Region, Maple Ridge, Mission and Pitt Meadows current labour market situation and anticipated labour market needs for the next five years. A final report will be produced by Oct. 11, 2014, identifying the top three opportunities for post-secondary, industry and business to work on a way to deliver labour market training in the North Fraser region recommending specific post-secondary/vocational training programs.
- St’at’imc Government Services:
- Provincial partnership funding: $110,000
- By March 31, 2015, St’at’imc Government Services will do a skills gap analysis to address current employment and training needs for the St’at’imc First Nations in the Lillooet, Pemberton, Whistler area.
- Iskut Band:
- Provincial partnership funding: $110,840
- By April 10, 2015, a report will be delivered outlining labour market strategy based on the results of a labour market survey and an in-depth skills inventory of Tahltan Nation members throughout B.C. The goal is to develop short- and long-term strategies to ensure that the Tahltan Nation is prepared to take advantage of the regional employment opportunities expected in the near future, including mining and LNG.
For more information on Community and Employer Partnerships visit: www.workbc.ca/CEP.
