Canada celebrates skills

Yesterday, we reported that Canada was celebrating National Skills Day. It didn’t seem like the country was making that big of a deal of it but maybe it was more positive than it first seemed. In fact, there were events held across the country. In Newfoundland, the College of the North Atlantic hosted a luncheon and a skilled trades obstacle course that included tasks like hammering, installing a spark plug and soldering two pipes together.

Newfoundland’s Human Resources, Labour and Employment Minister Shawn Skinner commented that “Demand for skilled labour in this province is increasing, and there are skill shortages all across the country. [Meanwhile] there are people from our province who are going to countries [to pursue other kinds of employment].”

Newfoundland is one province promoting the value of traditional trades. They have a teacher ambassador program wherein grade school students are encouraged to spend a day with a skilled trade worker such as a plumber, contractor or truck driver then share their experiences with class members. With numerous major industrial projects slated for development the province, which has suffered significant economic setbacks in the last twenty years, expects a boom in demand for skilled trades.