It is several years since I posted on this site. I do so now because of a recent development in Ontario, Canada. It occurred to me that it might be of interest to those on this site. That development is the professionalization of the skilled trades. ie. hairdresser, machinist, blacksmith, auto mechanic, chef etc. There are substantially more than hundred different trades in Ontario. This idea is no pipe dream it is happening, see the following site: Welcome to the Ontario College of Trades Esentially the provincial government of Ontario has created the institution that will be the regulating body for all licensed trades in Ontario. It will regulate, set professional standards, discipline, issue certificates, decide on apprentice/craftperson ratios. designate trades as compulsory or voluntary, bring non regulated jobs not currently considered trades under the umbrella (an example might be somthing like tatto artist). The College will also decide on the validity of foreign qualifications. In Ontario all this has gone ahead with hardly a whisper from the media, and very little interest from the multidudes of tradespeople who are going to be affected. I wonder what the wider world thinks of all this? I also must point out that I got myself appointed to the Board of Governors. Roy Maybery
Sounds interesting! I think the point is to coordinate the inflow of skilled trades apprentices and ‘outside’ skilled journeymen, and generate potential interest in skilled trades (union and non-union)….also sometimes known as regulation of quantities by licensing. Roy, I read your resume summary and you seem very qualified for the Board of Governors. I do hope this works out well, and it does not become a bureaucratic quasi-government obstacle to potential skill trades folk.:saeek: Like kizmet, I wonder…..where do YOU see this going?
Yes, I think the intent is good and probably should have been done universally a 100 years ago. I applied for the Board of Governors because I feared that it would become a nightmare if not approached with care and thought. I don't want it to become an obstacle to people wanting an apprenticeship, and I don't want it to drive employers away. I am also a member of the Ontario College of Teachers (I have to be if i want to teach in this province) and this institution is a nightmare.
Employers seem to be as much in the dark as tradespeople. However, the construction trade employers don't seem to like it. The unions tend to look at it with suspicion also. I think the building trades probably don't want to be held to account when you buy a house and big cracks appear in the wall. More seriously I think employers should be concerned because the College will potentially tell them who they can and can't employ. This will be in the context of compulsory certification. For example there are a substantial number of machinists working in Ontario who are not licensed by the Ontario ministry of Trades, and there are even more welders. If the college makes these trades and many others compulsory there could be immediate consequences to both workers and employers The unions don't like it for similar reasons furthermore, they don't want an independent body disciplining thei members.
Generally speaking, regulation is the first step to introducing consistency to trades. I hate to see people advertise their 'trades' who have never taken a course in their trade, which runs ramped in NS. I'm glad to see that Ontario is taking a leadership role. Now, if it could follow the European model and young people could enter their trade in Grade 10 and take courses specifically geared towards their trade, they could be 18, have their Grade 12 and are well on their way to be skilled tradespeople.
