Today’s apprentices lacking in specialized training for industrial, commercial and residential

I have been in the trades more than 30 years. I have worked on everything from services to high rises to residential, from commercial to industrial; I have worked on water and wastewater plants and refineries. I believe today’s apprenticeship programs need more layers of training to prepare that person to deal with industrial/commercial construction projects. We are seeing apprentices on site that do not have the tools and knowledge to be safe and do the job. Plumbers are called upon to do much more than plumbing these days and with that comes more responsibility: they need a higher level of training. Which, in my opinion, equates to a higher wages.

I believe we need a 5 level system, with training in services, residential, high rises, commercial and industrial. The individual that wanted a higher, more advanced qualification to earn more money and have a brighter future would be able to enrol in these applicable certifications. The colleges would have more courses to teach and more qualified trades people would emerge. We need to upgrade the system. Skilled trades people are key to our world.

Andy Lama