GDI wraps up its Aboriginal apprenticeship initiative
- James Oloo | May 28, 2014
It was on a warm summer day on Wednesday June 29, 2011 when GDI and its strategic partners launched the GDI Aboriginal Apprenticeship Initiative under the federal Strategic Partnership Fund in Saskatoon. The initiative was aimed at empowering Aboriginal people to enter apprenticeship programs and gain employment in the growing trades sector in Saskatchewan. On March 31, 2014, the initiative officially came to an end.
Aboriginal Skills and Partnership Fund (SPF) was a three-year, $2.1 million demand-driven, partnership-based federal program that funds projects contributing to skills training for Aboriginal workers. It was administered by Gabriel Dumont Institute Training and Employment administers the fund in the form of GDI Aboriginal Apprenticeship Initiative. The goals of the Initiative included having 120 Aboriginal apprentices indentured with the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trades Certification Commission, and partnerships with at least 60 individual companies in 17 different industries by January 31, 2014.
GDI Aboriginal Apprenticeship Initiative met and or exceeded all the targets as laid out in the agreement between Gabriel Dumont Institute and Employment and Skills Development Canada. Partly because of this success, the SPF agreement was amended in October 2013. Under the new agreement, the targets were changed to at least 140 indentured apprentices and 60 individual companies in 17 different industries by March 31, 2014.
To date, the institute has met and or exceeded all the new its targets as follows: 271 partnerships have been signed with employers in 17 different industries; and 156 Aboriginal apprentices (114 Métis, 94 First Nations, and 16 who did not specify their Aboriginal identity) have been indentured with Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trades Certification Commission (SATCC).
In 2010, there were 8,924 apprentices in Saskatchewan who were registered with SATCC. Of these, 13% or 1,160 were Aboriginal. The 156 Aboriginal apprentices that have been indentured through the GDI Aboriginal Apprenticeship Initiative has resulted in over 13% increase in Aboriginal apprentices in the province; and about 2% increase in the total number of apprentices in Saskatchewan to date. Many employers, especially small businesses, have expressed interest in continuing the partnership beyond the life of SPF.
Further, a total of 223 Aboriginal clients have been placed with employers to date. More than just numbers, these are individuals such as Robert Parrell, a 45-year-old Métis who lost his job in 2012 after more than 20 years as a production technician in the Saskatchewan film and television industry. Parrell is now Year II apprentice plumber with Reinhardt Plumbing and Heating in Regina and has plans of getting his journeyperson certification. For more stories about how the Gabriel Dumont Institute is changing lives of Métis people please visit GDI's website.
Feedback from project partners Saskatchewan Ministry of Highways, SATCC, and Dumont Technical Institute; and employer partners have been very positive. GDI Training and Employment counselors and program coordinators also gave comments on their experience with the initiative and suggested ways for improvement.
Reporting on the Initiative is on course. GDI has submitted two reports: Employer Partner Partnership Value Report and Project Partner Partnership Value Report to Service Canada last month. The final report is due on July 1, 2014.
For more information please contact GDI by email, Toll Free 1-877-488-6888, or visit GDI's website.