a journeyperson in four years. More real-
istically, says Sandhu, this can take up to
seven years, something the MBT is taking
strides to reduce.
RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES
“One of our primary priorities is to very
heavily recruit and promote skilled trades
careers to non-traditional participants,”
says Sandhu. “We cannot rely on less
than 50 per cent of the population to solve
100 per cent of our workforce require-
ments. We have an emphasise focusing
recruiting efforts on new Canadians, Indig-
enous communities, and women in skilled
trades.”
Recruitment strategies are designed spe-
cifically to address barriers present in one
group or another, says Sandhu. Specifi-
cally, MBT is working actively with Indig-
enous organizations to close that gap be-
tween training and work, and ensuring a
continuous group of work opportunities
followed by classroom training. For new
Canadians, language proficiency can be a
significant barrier.
NOVEMBER 2017
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