Ontario organization launches free, short-term welding training program

The Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie has announced a new, free job training program through its Skills2Advance training arm, in partnership with the CWB Welding Foundation.

Training will be delivered by four area colleges. The two-week-long classes start in June and will be offered regularly over the next year. Participants will be recruited from Brantford, Six Nations, New Credit and Brant, Haldimand and Norfolk counties. Residents of Hamilton, Cambridge, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Oxford County can also sign up.

Two-thirds of participants are expected to be women, a group that is underrepresented in the skilled trades. Only 10 per cent of welders in Grand Erie are female. There will also be opportunities for people who have a disability, youth, and other groups that are underrepresented in the trades.

The Women of Steel and Mind Over Metal curriculum will be delivered by instructors from Six Nations Polytechnic, Conestoga College, and Fanshawe College – Simcoe campus, using their welding shops. Mohawk College will provide training at its mobile classroom, which houses welding simulators in a truck trailer.

The one-year project is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development. It will include 30 hours of hands-on training, with the opportunity to obtain a CWB welding certification.

Another 30 hours will focus on training in first aid, CPR, forklift, working at heights, and soft skills, such as problem-solving and workplace communications.

Program participants will receive a free welding toolkit, which includes a welding helmet, and will be eligible to receive additional support to help cover other expenses, such as work boots.

When they graduate, participants will be assisted by local employment service agencies who will work with local businesses to offer on-the-job placements, which could lead to permanent positions.