Employers need to get apprentices in at ground level

Chad has some thoughts on apprenticeships, sparked by this long complaint.

Alberta is real bad for hiring entry level and First year Apprentices. If your a Journeyman your golden. The problem most companies will face with a shortage of Journeymen is having a Journeymen tell the employer what they are worth and not the other way around because they can easily get into business for themselves in certain trades or go to the highest bidder due to a shortage. That’s the importance of hiring entry level and get them started on an Apprenticeship 3 months later. Sometimes it’s the industry itself that creates it’s own shortages and not the Government because a company will take as many Journeymen and 3rd and second year Apprentices as possible leaving first year and entry level in the dark. It won’t work for them down the road. Shortages are looming in the near future. One thing I do think is the Governments fault is relying on industry to hire entry level. I feel that a individual that is interested in a career of any trade should be able to go to college without an employer signing them up for an apprenticeship and trades schools should be more involved with in industry to set those individuals up with an employer to gain their hours and more hands on training not the other way around because in most cases it can be a lost cause for that individual to get hired on with no experience at all.

• Chad