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NORCAT, IBEW share $1M in funding for skills training in Northern Ontario

Funding to provide training virtually and support skills development in remote first nation and Indigenous communities
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Labour Minister Monte McNaughton speaks at a funding announcement at NORCAT on Friday, as NORCAT CEO Don Duval, right, looks on.

On his visit though Northern Ontario, provincial Labour Minister Monte McNaughton made a stop at NORCAT in Sudbury to announce $1 million in funding to train 645 people for jobs in the construction, forestry, and mining industries. 

The funding will assist with training and development in two specific ways. 

NORCAT will receive $582,000 to train 20 people at its Thunder Bay location to become heavy equipment operators in the forestry sector. Trainees will receive free in-class and hands-on training over a period of five to six weeks at NORCAT’s forest and mining operations in Thunder Bay, with free lodging and transportation to and from their training site.

Trainees can expect to learn the operating fundamentals of a rock truck, or the bulldozer and the front end loader, among other mechanical equipment, while also gaining important leadership and soft skill training, said Don Duval, CEO, NORCAT.

It’s also a program that will be prioritizing applicants from remote First Nations and Indigenous communities. Priorities that NORCAT have experience with, said Duval.

He said that the Thunder Bay office of NORCAT has a “deliberate focus strategy,” to go to the remote communities to create awareness of opportunities. 

“For us, it's a very deliberate market outreach to these communities to ensure that they're aware that we provide the necessary infrastructure and support recognizing that they come into, you know, a new community, or living out of facility for four to six weeks, depending on the program that they've opted to enrolling, there's necessary support,” said Duval.

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1687 in Sudbury will also receive $467,500 to develop a virtual training centre to teach 625 electrical workers who live in remote Northern and First Nations communities.

Kevin Gaudaur, assistant business manager for the union, said that one of the challenges for the Brotherhood is the large jurisdiction to cover. For this reason, virtual training facilities will assist greatly. 

Gaudaur said during the presentation that by October, IBEW members will have state of the art training available. 

“We will be developing professional-grade training modules that will be accessible to our members on the fly,” said Gaudur. “We will also be able to livestream training courses from our facility in Sudbury, to our members throughout the North. Not only does this allow us to train members who reside in remote communities, but allows us to tackle the new challenges that we've all faced over the past two years, the electrical industry will become more skilled, much safer and increasingly productive because of this project.”

“These programs are truly market-driven solutions to get hundreds of people back into meaningful jobs,” said Minister McNaughton. “This will help industries that are the lifeblood of northern communities get the talent they need to grow and prosper.”

NORCAT’s training program will be offered from Sept. 13 to Dec. 3, 2021. To apply, contact NORCAT’s Thunder Bay office at 855-966-7228, ext. 324.IBEW Local 1687 will offer training beginning on Nov. 1, 2021. To apply, contact Chase Beaudoin, the union’s market development manager, at 249-878-0227 or email [email protected].


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Jenny Lamothe

About the Author: Jenny Lamothe

Jenny Lamothe is a reporter with Sudbury.com. She covers the diverse communities of Sudbury, especially the vulnerable or marginalized.
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