“I can’t stress enough how much we need to get into the secondary school system and even starting as young as probably grade sevens and eights when they are just starting to think about what the world of work might look like, there’s so many job opportunities today that they’re people don’t even think about.” Suru added.

That’s why Skills Canada Saskatchewan (SCS) and the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission (SATCC) support this week as they use it to raise awareness and highlight career opportunities in the trade and technology sectors.

One way they are doing this is by hosting a skills fair today, November 7 at Campus Regina Public for middle-year and high school students, so they can learn and get an idea of what jobs in the sector are like.

For young students who are interested in getting a start in the trades, they can join the Saskatchewan Youth Apprenticeship (SYA) program, which is designed for high school students to help discover and learn about working in the skilled trades through hands-on experience.

The SYA is developed and overseen by the SATCC, and students who register as apprentices in Saskatchewan within five years of program completion receive 300 trade time hours and get the Level 1 technical training tuition and apprenticeship registration fee waived.

Apprenticeship is a post-secondary education pathway in which 85 percent of the learning happens on the job with the other 15 per cent happening in a classroom. Institutions such as Saskatchewan Polytechnic are contracted by the SATCC to provide apprenticeship technical training across the province. Saskatchewan Polytechnic is the SATCC’s largest training provider.

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austin.mattes@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @AustinMattes