Exploratory programs prove effective tools for recruiting students into skilled trades

In an article for the Globe and Mail, Caroline Alphonso profiles the Canada-wide struggle to recruit high school students into the skilled trades. Despite severe labour shortages, students are still hesitant to pursue a career in the skilled trades, an issue that Alphonso attributes to lingering stigmas that students and parents associate with the trades. However, the writer highlights that co-op placements, bootcamps, and “sampler” programs that expose students to a variety of trades have proven to be effective recruitment tools for the skilled trades. Alphonso concludes that exploration programs like these “may be the key to deepening understanding of the skilled trades for both students and their parents.”

The Globe and Mail (Acct Req)