Monday, August 27, 2007
Trades Program for Women Profiled in Toronto Star
Today, the Toronto Star profiled a unique women's-only program in residential heating and air conditioning systems installation and repair at George Brown College. The program is designed to train at-risk women for an in-demand trade--in this case, to graduate with a gas technician III license, which would allow women to enter the workforce directly or continue apprenticeship towards a licensed trade.
The George Brown program offers women tuition, books and subsidized transit passes for six months of courses in Toronto, and there's financial assistance for work clothes, boots, and emergency funds for rent arrears, child care and food. In the article, co-ordinator Anna Willats says that "the idea is to eliminate barriers to education, so the women can focus on completing their training and getting into the workforce."
ACTEW profiled our member agency Working Women Community Centre, which piloted a baker/patissier pre-apprenticeship program for women, also offered in conjunction with George Brown College. This 36-week, full-time program was funded by MTCU and designed to tap into a skill set common among women who have stayed at home to raise children and maintain households. Demand for this program was extremely high. Although it was an untested new initiative, 63 women applied. Of these, 20 individuals were selected. Fourteen women completed their paid placements and thirteen are now employed in full-time permanent positions in Toronto-area hotels. Read the full profile.
Clearly, innovative programs like these provide effective training to women by addressing the unique barriers women face who are under-employed or unemployed and by training them for careers that are experiencing skills shortages.
The George Brown program offers women tuition, books and subsidized transit passes for six months of courses in Toronto, and there's financial assistance for work clothes, boots, and emergency funds for rent arrears, child care and food. In the article, co-ordinator Anna Willats says that "the idea is to eliminate barriers to education, so the women can focus on completing their training and getting into the workforce."
ACTEW profiled our member agency Working Women Community Centre, which piloted a baker/patissier pre-apprenticeship program for women, also offered in conjunction with George Brown College. This 36-week, full-time program was funded by MTCU and designed to tap into a skill set common among women who have stayed at home to raise children and maintain households. Demand for this program was extremely high. Although it was an untested new initiative, 63 women applied. Of these, 20 individuals were selected. Fourteen women completed their paid placements and thirteen are now employed in full-time permanent positions in Toronto-area hotels. Read the full profile.
Clearly, innovative programs like these provide effective training to women by addressing the unique barriers women face who are under-employed or unemployed and by training them for careers that are experiencing skills shortages.
Labels: Issues_and_Trends, Resources_and_Research
