GDI is a Saskatchewan-based educational, employment and cultural institute serving Métis across the province
Oct 12, 2017
Posted in: Apprenticeship, employment
By James Oloo
The Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) Aboriginal Apprenticeship Project (2014-2017) has ended successfully having met and surpassed all the milestones stated in the Agreement by its contract end date. A final report to the federal Western Economic Diversification Canada was completed and submitted this month.
The project had five key targets: One, creating 150 new apprenticeship jobs across Saskatchewan. In total, 407 unique Indigenous participants were placed with employers; representing 271% of the target.
Of the 407 Aboriginal participants who were employed, 47 (or 12%) are women and 360 (88%) are men. By comparison, there were 9,437 registered apprentices in Saskatchewan in 2015-2016, 9.3% (or 879) of whom were women.
Apprenticeship programs are employer driven in that a participant has to be placed with an employer. As of September 1, 2017, GDI Training & Employment had signed a total of 606 contracts with employers for 606 employment positions across Saskatchewan. The second target of the GDI Aboriginal Apprenticeship Project was for GDI Training and Employment to partner with 100 employers in 15 different trades to offer job opportunities for its clients. As of September 2017, GDI Training & Employment had partnered with 245 employers in 30 different trades.
Employers in Saskatoon and Area, including North Battleford, signed 232 contracts with GDI Training & Employment to offer jobs for 232 positions. This accounted for 38% of the total contracts signed and could be attributed to the economic strength of the region. This was followed by Prince Albert and Area with 155 (26%) contracts), the North with 133 (22%), and Regina and Area, including Yorkton, with 86 (14%).
The third target was to have at least 100 clients indentured with the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trades Certification Commission (SATCC). The project attained 175% of this target by having 175 clients indentured.
Four, the GDI Aboriginal Apprenticeship Project aimed to have 50 indentured clients complete at least one term of technical training. In total, 162 participants from all levels of their trade, namely Level I to Level IV, completed at least one level of technical training. This represents 324% of the project’s goal.
As well, to enable potential clients without qualifications to enter the Aboriginal Apprenticeship Project, GDI Training & Employment committed to offering a trades-focused General Educational Development (GED, a high school equivalency diploma for 50 participants. The GED program had a total completion of 52 (or 104% of the target).
GDI is a Saskatchewan-based educational, employment and cultural institute serving Métis across the province
