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COTR gains trades funding
The College of the Rockies will receive $612,681 as part of the one-time $10 million investment from the province to help 16 public post-secondary institutions provide skills training and prepare workers for jobs in their regions.
The investment will help post-secondary institutions train workers for the current job market and meet local labour demands by connecting workers with job opportunities in their regions, notes a provincial government press release.
The funding, made available through the Canada–British Columbia Labour Market Development Agreement, will go toward short-term training programs that support the sectors in the BC Jobs Plan.
“I’m happy the province has recognized the East Kootenay as a pillar of trades development in British Columbia with this funding. We expect to see an increase of 104,600 trades jobs over the course of the next 10 years and through initiatives like these, we’ll be successful in filling them,” stated East Kootenay MLA Bill Bennett.
Over the next decade, British Columbia is projected to have over one million job openings. This funding will help train workers to fill these job openings and keep our communities and economies strong.
Each institution receiving funds will determine specifically how to apply the funding for training, working with industry and business sectors to address regional labour market needs.
Government is investing approximately $66 million a year – between 2008 and 2014 – in services that help people get the skills they need to fill job opportunities in regions where they live and study. These services are funded through the Canada-BC Labour Market Agreement.
The province invests over $100 million annually in industry training through the Industry Training Authority (ITA), which is the provincial Crown agency responsible for overseeing B.C.’s industry training and apprenticeship system. This investment is almost $33 million (or 45 per cent) higher than it was in 2004 when the ITA was established.
The province has created Regional Workforce Tables, which bring people together to discuss how to best align training programs to meet regional needs. Representation on the tables include key leaders from industry, labour, employers, First Nations, educators, training service providers, economic development organizations and others.
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