Premay a strong supporter of Aboriginal apprentices

There are now 1,126 Aboriginal apprentices working in Alberta. This is an increase of 888 apprentices in less than four years, and a cause to celebrate.

"This is the highest number we've ever had," said Dave Hancock, minister of Advanced Education. "It's particularly a testament to companies like Premay Equipment Ltd. who invest in the future workforce by hiring and training apprentices. Employers like Premay are an important part of our apprenticeship system and one of the key reasons why our province apprenticeship industry training system is known for its success across the country."

Hancock, along with the Pearl Calahasen, minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, representatives from the apprenticeship industry board, Brent Harris, president of Premay, and most importantly two of the company's three apprentices, Conrad Bird and Russell House, gathered together at Premay Equipment LP in west Edmonton on Feb. 27 to mark the milestone in Aboriginal apprenticeships.

"Today's announcement shows the progress that's being made in the apprenticeship training for Aboriginal Albertans," said Hancock. "It shows that we're moving closer to a vision of a learning society where all Albertans, regardless of where they come from, regardless of their background, have access to learning opportunities that they need in their area of passion and interest. It's a vision which goes beyond institutional thinking, and recognizing that learning happens not just on a college campus, but also in workplaces, workplaces like Premay."

Since 1964, Premay has been providing transportation services for oversize and overweight modules, vessels, equipment and machinery, serving clients in the petroleum, energy, mining, and construction sectors in various locations including Calgary, Fort McMurray, Regina and Vancouver. Premay has the in-house resources to repair and maintain its own equipment. They can also design and build new equipment or modify existing components.

"Here at Premay, we believe in training," said Harris.

"We dedicate much of our safety and our human resource to educate, train and encourage our young workforce to acquire journeyman tickets."

The apprenticeships within Alberta are made possible through the Alberta Aboriginal Apprenticeship Project (AAAP). The AAAP operates in five Alberta communities, including Calgary, Edmonton, Fort McMurray, High Level and Lethbridge. It was established in 2001 to promote apprenticeship and industry training to Aboriginal people, communities, and organizations in Alberta.

"Working with the AAAP has opened the door to job fairs that typically we did not have years ago," said Harris. "This has enabled us to bring the youth into our workplace."

Youth like Bird and House are in their first year of their four-year apprenticeship program. They are working towards journeyman tickets.

One of the benefits of this apprenticeship program is the ability to earn while they learn.

According to the AAAP, both Conrad Bird and Russell House receive an industry-appropriate wage and this will increase with each year of the program that they successfully complete.

"I plan to get into a good trade after I'm done here," said Bird of Seba Beach, west of Edmonton. "I really enjoy it so far."

House is from Duffield, which is also west of Edmonton.

"I think this is the first step in recognition of how well the AAAP is working," said Jeff Norris, a representative from the apprenticeship training board. "This definitely needs to keep going because there are people willing and capable of doing this work and today is a good example of that. I believe that there needs to be support of the industry first and foremost because that's where the employment is going to happen."

The gathering gave Hancock the opportunity to announce a new initiative that is being worked on in Edmonton and will be delivered later this year.

"We're working on a new labor force development strategy and the goal of this strategy, entitled Building and Educating Tomorrow's Workforce, is to develop the best educated and the most highly skilled workforce in the country," said Hancock. "One of the targets of the strategy is to increase the number of Aboriginal apprentices to 1,500 within the next three years, and it's a goal I don't anticipate we'll have any challenges meeting if we continue to build on this success already achieved."

For those interested in a trades apprenticeship opportunity or for more information about AAAP, call the Edmonton office toll-free 1-800-4008-1840 or visit, www.tradesecrets.org.

Advanced learning is not just about finding our place in the workplace, it's about making our lives richer and fuller," said Hancock. "It's about giving us the capacity to contribute back to our community. It's about every Albertan being able to maximize his or her potential, not only for a job, but so you can give back and be good citizens, contributing to make the community stronger. It means helping every Albertan from where they are now to where they can be and, most importantly, it means inspiring Albertans to want to learn and making sure they have the opportunity to do so."