By Cheryl Jahn

Construction industry thinks outside the box

Nov 6, 2023 | 12:22 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – “I was working for my a relative who owned a pipeline company. So I came in and I was able to operate heavy equipment and then I was able to work under welders and pipefitters and crane operators to get different experiences. And from that, I was able to say, ‘Hey, I’d like to become a welder. I really I really enjoy the work.’,” explains Chris Montgomery-Hewett, Acting Dean, the School of Trades and Technologies at the College of New Caledonia.

And today, she represents a demographic that is of interest to the B.C. Construction Association. It’s called the Apprenticeship Services Program, designed to get young trades into jobs. But there is a hook. Additional funds for companies that hire the non-traditional tradesperson.

“So if The New Apprentice is in any equity-seeking group, whether that be a woman in construction, Indigenous part of the LGBTQ community, they can qualify for an additional $5,000,” explains Nicole Bryant, CEO of the Northern Regional Construction Association. Bryant says even today, women only represent 7% of the construction industry. It’s a sentiment Montgomery-Hewett understands.

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“It’s been a very slow change in the student demographic. For us and the college right across the country. Definitely, more work can be done.”

But she says employers are starting to realize that the construction demographic is no longer straight white men.

“I definitely know that there have been incentives for employers to hire apprentices, period. One or two more as the skilled trades come in. I didn’t realize there was more specific directed for minorities. I think any incentive is helpful for sure, especially for employers. We’ve got some really tight margins these days with the costs, so definitely that will help support them in hiring more people.” The new program is aimed at small to medium-sized companies that hire and register first-year apprentices and up to 39 red SEAL trades.