The Squamish Nation Trades Training Centre, in partnership with The Finishing Trades Institute of BC, recently completed a two week introduction to construction program at our facility. Normally this would be just another story on trades training however, this program had a bit of a different twist. This class was made up entirely of First Nations women who had all expressed an interest in trying their hand at the construction trades. According to our Instructors, these were some of the most enthusiastic hands they had ever had the pleasure to teach.
The women were part of a cohort of individuals who had enrolled in a program that would allow them to try a trade for a week at a time at various union training facilities around the Lower Mainland. Two of these weeks were spent at the FTI, where they were exposed to the Wall & Ceiling trades of Drywall Finishing and Wall & Ceiling Installation as well as the Glazing trade. All three of our Instructors involved in the program remarked on the positive attitudes and willingness to work as a team displayed by the entire group.
Although one week may seem like a short amount of time to gain an appreciation for a particular trade, our Instructors managed to come up with some dynamic projects that grabbed the attention of these students while giving them a basic understanding of the craft.
We are hoping that this will be the first of many such programs we run in concert with the Squamish Nation Trades Training Centre and are hopeful that some of the women in this class choose one of our Finishing Trades as a possible career.
We’d like to extend our thanks to Peter Baker and his staff from the Squamish Nation Trades Training Centre, for allowing our facility to participate in this ground breaking project.
