Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Building Hope

How can we solve the growing skills shortage? Through some unlikely partnerships, CLAC has a homegrown solution that offers more than just jobs

Guide Magazine

A motley crew gathers in the Whitefish Lake community hall on a warm August morning, wearing everything from Carhartts, to jeans and backward ball caps, to dress pants. Some have traveled a few kilometres and others have traveled a few thousand kilometres to be here.

What brings these people—students, industry leaders, trade school instructors, government representatives, community leaders, and union representatives—to this remote community two-and-a-half hours north of Edmonton? The double goal of getting more Aboriginal people into the workforce and helping to alleviate western Canada’s skills shortage.

“Companies are bringing in foreign workers,” says Rennie Houle, the employment training coorinator for the Whitefish Lake First Nation. “But we’ve got a workforce here and there’s a possibility to get them mobilized—our young Aboriginal workforce.”

It’s an undertaking that requires partnership between government, Aboriginals, employers, and unions, who have all learned through past failures that partnership is the only way to succeed.
The Whitefish Lake First Nation has run countless training programs over the years, and may have more journeyperson tradespeople than any other First Nations community in Alberta. The problem it keeps running into, however, is finding employment for graduates outside of the reserve, and keeping them employed.

“I was having a hard time breaking into industry as far as job opportunities were concerned,” says Rennie. So he called Warren Kootenay, CLAC’s Aboriginal Initiatives Program coordinator. “The CLAC program was exactly what we were looking for,” he says. “It provides training in multiple areas of skills. And CLAC had connections with signatory companies, and that was an excellent opportunity for our nation.”

Started in 2005, the program aims to help Aboriginal people enter the workforce, and help employers hire and retain these workers. The courses provided at Whitefish Lake were Construction Craft Labourer and Pre-employment Scaffold Program, as well as life skills. So far, it has been run on the reserve twice.

Keenan Stamp, who graduated from the first program in the winter of 2013, is working as a scaffolder at Surmount camp with Link Scaffold Services. “I heard about this program from Rennie and I wanted to take it because scaffolding is a good trade, and I could make a good career out of it. The program put me where I wanted to go. I love scaffolding and it’s fun. It really keeps you busy.”

Keenan’s success and the success of other tradespeople from the community have contributed to the program’s popularity.

“If one person finishes something, if one person makes money, the next person will see this guy is doing well, and say, ‘I want to do that,’ ” says Brian Favel, who is a journeyman plumber and gasfitter and a band councillor in the Whitefish First Nation.

Twenty-four people applied for the fourteen spots in the second program, including Bryan Hunter, who graduated in August. “I took the program because when the opportunity came up, I couldn’t pass it up. I saw all the money the boys were making. My little brother is actually doing this too, and my cousin—they went through the first program.”

“It’s a real good opportunity to get my life where I want it to be,” says Thomas Chief, who also graduated in August.

Elmer Haan, CLAC Alberta Training program coordinator, says “the whole key is getting that individual onto a construction site or into a job. Now, they can actually choose what direction they may like to go—electrical, plumbing, etc.” So far, many graduates have chosen scaffolding.

To ensure graduates have the qualifications employers are looking for, employers are involved in the program from the beginning—starting with its development and the interview process for the students.

“I helped pick the candidates,” says Leyna Sledz, who works in HR for Cornerstone Industrial Ltd., a scaffolding company based in Edmonton. “There were three other companies and we interviewed all the candidates for the program and selected them ourselves. You feel a sense of attachment to them and you want to see them succeed when you’ve seen them start from the very beginning.”

“It’s not just CLAC and its signatory companies involved in this,” says Elmer. “There’s building trades and non-union companies involved. We’re all working together for the student.”

Leyna agrees that the focus is on the students. “At the end of the day, if these guys are going into the training and there’s no job available for them, what’s the point? she says. “It’s going to be hard for them to see down the road and say ‘there’s a future in this for me,’ and waking up early every day to do training if there are no jobs at the end of it.”

Near the end of the program, seven companies, along with a government representative and CLAC training reps, made the trek to Whitefish Lake to make presentations to the students, meet them one-on-one, and enjoy a lunch of fresh fish caught by Rennie.

“The partnerships we have here are super and give people added opportunities,” says Rennie. “Today’s event is something we did with them last time. It’s an opportunity for companies to meet trainees and trainees to meet companies so they aren’t just a piece of paper. I think it is part of why we have eleven of twelve graduates still working from the last program.”

It hasn’t always been an easy road. “Being in a First Nation semi-isolated, there’s a lot of challenges, a lot of barriers, generations of lifestyle, different kinds of issues that we’re faced with on a daily basis on a reserve,” says Rennie. “So for them to get trained and go out is one big barrier itself because it causes culture shock. Going to a camp of 3,000 people or going to a camp itself where you’re not used to being with a bunch of other guys. It’s something that’s very different and shocking to them.

“The other challenges we have are generational—violence, drug and alcohol abuse. It’s not maybe something the individual themselves have, but their family and their upbringing and the way of life—the way we usually live now has to subtly change to move on. And to go seek that employment opportunity. To have that opportunity for financial stability is challenging, but it’s the reason the life skills and job readiness is such a big part of these training programs—of any training program for First Nations, I believe.”

In spite of taking job readiness training as part of the program, some students still experience culture shock when they go to work for a large construction company.

“If you grow up with it in this environment working in these communities, it’s very different than working for a construction outfit, because they expect you to be there at a certain time,” says Jason Arcand, who runs the life skills component of the program. “The students are more relaxed out in the community. So getting them out there where they have to be busy, it’s a whole different mentality and different work ethic.”

It also means that HR people need to be more understanding at times.

“One gentleman who had a death in his family, he took some time off,” says Leyna. “When the leave of absence came to an end and he didn’t come to work or call, the site assumed he’d quit. When he contacted me and asked for his job back, I had to take what I’ve learned from being involved in this program to his supervisors, and explain some of the cultural differences. We all agreed that another opportunity was warranted.”

Bridging the culture gap requires a partnership approach as well.

“The program started as a way to get Aboriginal people into the workforce,” says Warren. “Now, it’s morphed into creating awareness, too, of the community and preparing our signatory companies and our stewards on working with Aboriginal people. So we’re working on an Aboriginal awareness training for stewards.”

It’s through partnership that these training programs will be successful, and it’s through strong leadership in the Aboriginal communities that more and more people will have access to these courses.

“You see the CLAC signatories, building trades, and independent companies shaking hands and talking,” says Rennie. “Sure there’s competition, but they managed to put that aside and look to the best interests of Whitefish Lake First Nation.

“I think some of the First Nations communities are a little late or slow in doing training initiatives. Why aren’t they getting into construction? That’s where the job market is at. The partnerships are there; the companies are there. Our ultimate goal is work and retention and it’s happening. And if I could run ten of these courses, if I had the people to do it, I would.”

Through these courses, people are given the opportunity to learn new skills, embark on a rewarding career, and care for their families.

“I can see how it can make a difference for them,” says Aris Smits, the Construction Craft Labourer instructor. “Not all of them are going to be successful. But there’s a number of them, and then you talk to their parents—the lady who was driving the [student shuttle] van, her son is now employed full-time and has a better family life and looks really great.”

“I’m going to build a good solid foundation for myself and my family,” says Bryan Hunter. “And I’ll be working in scaffolding for a good while—I don’t plan to leave it anytime soon. I like scaffolding.”

“Sometimes, living at the camp gets hard,” says Keenan. “You’re thinking about your family, and there’s a lot of sacrifices that have to be made, but it’s worth it because you’re providing for them.”

It’s these success stories that keep the partners enthused.

“I think with the success of these programs, we’ll see more in the future,” says Leyna. “It would be nice to see even more companies jumping on board and getting behind it.”

It might be easier in the short term for companies to just bring in foreign workers that are already trained. But looking long term, training Aboriginal people will help build a strong, sustainable Canadian workforce. Through sometimes unlikely partnerships, CLAC’s Aboriginal Initiatives Program is also building something more important in the lives of many Aboriginal people—hope.

Aboriginal Initiatives Program

Why?
1. Help Aboriginal people enter the workforce
2. Signatory companies need aboriginal workers, both to fill worker shortages and to meet tendering requirements set by project owners.

Who?
•   12–14 students
•   CLAC trainers
•   Life-skills trainers
•   Alberta Works and Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development as program funders
•   Cornerstone, Kiewit, Flint, and SAFWAY as industry partners

Challenges
•   Transportation
•   Infrastructure (proper roads to bring equipment in and proper training facilities)
•   Social issues
•   Cultural barriers
•   Funding

The Whitefish Model
The program has run several courses over the years, but the Whitefish model has been the most successful. CLAC:
1.   identified the needs and required course(s) while partners validated the training program;
2.   identified partners and got their buy-in;
3.   involved partners in the student selection process;
4.   held roundtable meetings with partners;
5.   held 16 weeks of training:
•   Foundations of Success (4 weeks),
•   9 safety tickets (2 weeks),
•   Construction Craft Labourer (6 weeks),
•   Pre-employment and Scaffolding (2 weeks),
•   job placements (2 weeks);
6.   had industry partners interview successful students for job placements and monitoring.

Where is the AIP going from here?
•   Continue using the Whitefish model.
•   Create Aboriginal awareness within signatory companies by developing Aboriginal awareness workshops for stewards.
•   Continue to meet with government and Aboriginal leaders to expand the program.

Building Hope

Aboriginal Initiatives Program

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