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September 21, 2019

Alberta government announces $10 million for women in trades

 

 

As reported in the Edmonton Sun, the province announced $10 million in funding over the next four years to boost women in the skilled trades on Thursday.

Speaking from the Women Building Futures (WBF) workshop in Edmonton, Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said the funding to the non-profit organization would help strengthen Alberta’s economy as nearly 45,000 skilled trade workers are expected to retire in the next 10 years.

Currently, only about five per cent of field-level workers in the skilled trades are women.

“We must take action to help empower women to pick up a tool and find a rewarding career,” said Nicolaides from the workshop of WBF, which encourages and trains women to join the skilled trades, on Thursday. “Our government recognizes that women have a critical role to play in restarting our economy and getting pipelines built.

“Women Building Futures will undoubtedly be looked towards to help lead the way.”

But post-secondaries — including those which train workers in the skilled trades — are preparing for the possibility of cuts when the first UCP budget is unveiled in October.

In a recent report, a blue-ribbon panel chaired by former Saskatchewan NDP finance minister Janice MacKinnon recommended cuts in spending on key budget items like education, health care and justice.

It is unclear how many of the MacKinnon report’s 26 recommendations will be incorporated into the next budget, but cuts to post-secondaries could be in the millions.

Keep reading in the Edmonton Sun