By Mike Davey
Toronto, Ontario — September 17, 2015 — The shortage of qualified personnel in collision repair might be due to what some call the “apprenticeship disconnect.” Despite some 240 to 315 new apprentices each year signing agreements in Ontario, fewer than 25 percent of them will actually attend training school.
“These apprentices often do not leave the industry, continuing to work at shops without taking time for schooling,” says John Norris of Collision Industry Information Assistance (CIIA). “This is why there are so many eighth, tenth and even twenty-ninth year apprentices in the industry.”
This is the problem in a nutshell. Good recruitment numbers when it comes to potential workers entering the trade, but so few of them attending class that many colleges struggle to offer apprentice classes.
This issue will be under discussion at a meeting on September 28 at Centennial College’s Ashtonbee campus in Toronto.
“This effort builds on the consensus reached at last year’s meeting at the Ontario College of Trades,” says Norris. “Last year we decided on six proposals and recommendations that can make a difference in generating activity, interest and action to ensure we are all solving this ‘disconnect’ problem.”
A review of actions and successes since last year is included for the September 28 meeting, and will include standards updates, curriculum changes, log books, enforcement and budget changes.
The meeting is open to all interested members of the industry, but pre-registration is required. Please contact John Norris at johnnorris@ciia.com to confirm attendance.
