Plan trains Aboriginal workers for mining careers

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About 42 per cent of the people employed in mining in northern Saskatchewan are Aboriginal, thanks in part to the Multi-Party Training Plan.

The plan began in 1993 as a five-year initiative designed to provide people in Northern Saskatchewan with the skills and training needed to find employment in the mining sector.

When the initial five years of the plan ended in 1998, a second five-year phase was added, which is set to end in June, 2003.

The multi-party part of the training plan name comes from the partners involved in implementing the plan, representing several provincial and federal government departments, First Nations organizations, post-secondary institutions and the mining industry.

During the first phase of the plan, $13 million in training and in-kind expenditures were committed by the partners, with 575 training certificates awarded in apprenticeships, technical training, skills training and academic upgrading. In the first two years of phase two, the plan partners have already contributed $8 million in funding, with 241 training certificates awarded. And while the focus of the first phase of the plan was on preparing people in the north with skills and training needed to fill jobs in mining, phase two has an expanded focus, preparing northerners for science careers, promoting science and math studies among northern youth, upgrading training for employees already working in the mining sector, and promoting opportunities for small businesses.

In the first seven years of the plan, 81 per cent of the people enrolled in training have been Aboriginal. According to information provided by Saskatchewan Post-Secondary Education and Skills Training, the plan has helped to double the numbers of northern residents employed in northern mine sites, with Aboriginal people making up almost 40 per cent of mine site employees.

The plan has also had a positive economic impact on the region. Figures from 1999 show that $200 million went into the northern economy through payroll, contracts and purchases, five times the amount coming in before the plan came into being.

According to Terri Franks with Saskatchewan Post-Secondary Skills Training, figures from March show that, of the 1,447 people employed at eight mine sites in Northern Saskatchewan, 741 or just over 51 per cent are from the north, and 608, or 42 per cent are Aboriginal. Those figures represent the workforces at Cluff Lake, McClean Lake, Key Lake, McArthur River, Rabbit Lake, Cigar Lake, Seabee mine and Konuto Lake.

Don Deranger has been involved in the Multi-Party Training Plan since its inception, Having worked to get it into place while a provincial employee in 1990, he continued his work with the plan following its launch. Deranger, who works for the Prince Albert Grand Council, is training and employment coordinator for the Athabasca region.

When the plan started up in 1993, about 90 people from the Athabasca region were employed in mining. He set a goal of increasing that number to 300 by 1998. In 1998, 315 mining employees came from the region.

In his role, Deranger helps set up training, and helps select candidates for the training programs.

While implementation of the training plan got off to a flying start, the plan has been affected by recent slowdowns in the mining sector, Deranger explained.

"The first five years was very successful. Most of the people that were involved in training were employed. The second phase has seen a turn around in the industry. There's been a lot of layoffs. Right now, we had probably about 300 people employed in the Athabasca region going into the second phase. And today, I think, we're lucky if we've got 150," he said.

With the downturn in the industry, Deranger has begun to focus on the future, hoping things will pick up again within a couple of years.

"We have a lot of people that are qualified, and that want to get back into the mining field. But right now, they're being laid off, so we're just looking t what kind of skills are going to be needed," he said. "Once everybody gets called back, and over and above they still require more people, then we'll look at a training program that will assist them in filling the vacancies."

While the layoffs have meant training through the plan has slowed down, Deranger explained some of the communities affected are working with him to develop training initiatives of their own.

One of those communities is Fond-du-Lac, where Deranger has met with community members to talk about their plans to start up a motor vehicle mechanic course in the community.

"I told the community that it would be good to not only focus on one mechanical trade for the community, but to look at other trades. So what they're going to do is they're going to have three sections under the program," Deranger said. "It's a basic mechanical course. And they'll have so much time on motor vehicle mechanics, they'll have so much time on industrial mechanics, and they'll have so much time on heavy-duty mechanics. And at the end of the course they'll get a certificate for having the basic knowledge of the mechanical trade."

The mechanical training will not only provide those taking it with an alternative livelihood while the mining industry is in a down turn, but will also give them added skills that are transferable to the mining industry once things pick up again.

As for the long term, Deranger remains optimistic. "I'd like to get the numbers back up to 300, and once that's achieved, then look and see how much more I can bring the numbers up . . . and based on the Multi-Party Training Plan, we could probably look at an additional 50 to 100 more people from the Athabasca employed by 2005."