Ottawa, Ontario — The Ontario government has increased skilled trade apprenticeship registrations by 24 percent in the last year, according to a press release from Tuesday.
Last year, 21,971 new apprentices were registered in Ontario; as of April 2023, 27,319 new apprentices were registered in the province.
As of April 2023, Ontario had 91,634 active apprentices. About 1.3 million people work in skilled trades related occupations in Ontario, according to the press release. The number of apprentices in automotive fields was not specified.
The government is hoping the trend will continue, particularly considering its “highly popular skilled trades career fairs” will be expanding to even more cities across the country. Students in Grades 7 to 12 will have the chance to learn about the 144 different skilled trades through interactive exhibitions and hands-on activities while hearing directly from tradespeople and local employers about these lucrative careers. Last year, 12,800 students, parents, friends, and teachers visited events in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, London, Mississauga and Ottawa.
Ontario is also supporting 95 new pre-apprenticeship programs to combine on-the-job training with classroom learning.
