Backgrounder


Supporting Apprenticeship

October 15, 2009

The McGuinty government recognizes that supporting apprenticeship and skills training is crucial to Ontario's success in the new economy.

Ontario's labour force growth is projected to decline over the coming years as workers retire and fewer young people enter the workforce. Ontario needs to recruit more skilled workers, and to ensure that they have skills and knowledge to meet the demands of tomorrow's marketplace.

The government is helping apprenticeship with new program supports, and financial incentives that will be available to apprentices and employers in January 2010. In addition, Ontario is preparing the apprenticeship and skilled trades system for the future through:

  • Introducing legislation that would, if passed, create an Ontario College of Trades. This regulatory college would give industry a more prominent role in recruitment, governance, certification and training.
  • Offering the Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit to businesses employing apprentices in certain skilled trades. The 2009 Budget would make the Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit (ATTC) the most generous tax credit of its kind in Canada and increase the maximum credit to $10,000.
  • Modernizing infrastructure and equipment at colleges and industry training centres so apprentices and journeypersons can benefit from state-of-the-art facilities.

As a result of government apprenticeship initiatives, there are 120,000 Ontario apprentices learning a trade today – nearly 60,000 more than there were in 2003. New annual apprenticeship registrations have increased from 17,100 in 2003 to more than 28,000 in 2009. The government will continue to increase the number of new registrations to 32,500 annually by 2012, marking a 25 per cent increase over 2008.

By 2011, the government will also help build more than 5,200 new spaces for apprentices in projects funded through the joint Knowledge Infrastructure program, the Ontario Strategic Capital Infrastructure program and the Strategic Skills Training Capital Investment program.

Apprenticeship combines on-the-job and in-school training to prepare people for employment in a skilled trade. There are over 150 trades in the construction, industrial, motive power and service sectors that offer apprenticeships.

On average, 90 per cent of apprenticeship training takes place in the workplace with instruction by certified journeypersons. The remainder involves classroom instruction delivered at a community college or industry training centre.

Investing in skills and knowledge of Ontarians through apprenticeship training, postsecondary education and employment programs is a cornerstone of the McGuinty government.