As many as nine eligible British Columbians will get skills training to prepare them for employment in the trucking industry in the Columbia Valley.

“The safe transport of bulk, industrial and consumer goods is vital to British Columbia’s recovering economy,” said Nicholas Simons, Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction. “Graduates of this professional driver program will find themselves qualified to secure well-paying jobs in a variety of sectors. I wish them all the best in their training.”

This is the second intake of a new Community and Employer Partnerships (CEP) project from the Government of British Columbia. Participant recruitment is focused on Indigenous individuals.

The Province is providing almost $650,000 to College of the Rockies in Golden to deliver skills and certification courses in two intakes of its professional Class 1 truck driver program.

“Graduates of this program will achieve mandatory entry-level training (MELT); a program for new commercial truck drivers that will improve the safety on our highways,” said Rob Fleming, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. “We’re proud to have the support of the industry and drivers as we enact the highest standards in the country.”

Participants will receive 13 weeks of essential, occupational and practical skills training, four weeks of on-the-job work experience and two weeks of followup support to assist in their job search. Courses include MELT, air brake training, truck theory and simulator training.

Participants will also receive certification courses in Workplace Hazardous Material Information Systems, Occupational First Aid Level 1, Transportation Endorsement, Transportation of Dangerous Goods, Truck Weight and Dimensions, and Electronic Logging Devices.

“Trucking has always been essential to the GDP of Canada as the No. 1 way we move goods across the country,” said Leah Bradish, director of continuing education, contract training and regional campus operations, College of the Rockies. “COVID shone a light on the importance of trucking and these positions in our recovery. Golden’s location on the Trans-Canada Highway makes it a great base for these individuals to train and find high-paying work in the industry.”

Funding for this project is provided through the Project Based Labour Market Training stream of WorkBC’s CEP. CEP’s investments are targeted toward projects that support an inclusive economic recovery. CEP supports B.C. job seekers’ training and work experience, leading to employment in available jobs, and aids businesses and communities to address labour-market challenges. CEP invests $15 million annually in communities throughout B.C.

“The robust skills training in this new program demonstrates commitment to valuable trades education that trains the workforce of tomorrow, helps businesses hire and grow and invests in the infrastructure needed to build our province,” said Andrew Mercier, Parliamentary Secretary for Skills Training.

Full-time, group-based classroom learning for the second intake of this project starts on Monday, Nov. 8, 2021, and will run until March 31, 2022. The first intake started July 26 and will run until Dec. 3, 2021. Anyone interested in finding out more about this or other CEP projects can contact their local WorkBC centre.

Learn More:

Learn how CEPs are helping communities: www.workbc.ca/Employment-Services/Community-and-Employer-Partnerships.aspx

Learn about how WorkBC can help find British Columbians jobs that are right for them: www.workbc.ca/rightforyou

Find your local WorkBC centre: https://www.workbc.ca/Employment-Services/WorkBC-Centres/WorkBC-Centres-Listing.aspx

College of the Rockies: https://cotr.bc.ca/truck-driver/