Aboriginal Mining Training Program Closing
Monday, June 11, 2012 @ 3:59 AM
Vancouver, B.C. – A successful program that helps connect Aboriginal men and women with careers in the BC mining and exploration sector is closing its doors after two and a half years.
The BC Aboriginal Mine Training Association says a lack of funding is the reason the office will shut down as of June 15th despite recognition by government and industry for its work.
“When BC AMTA began, our goal was to place 148 people in jobs. Through hard work and a passionate commitment to our mandate, we doubled that and today, more than 310 Aboriginal men and women have found sustainable employment through their participation in BC AMTA skills training programs,” said Laurie Sterritt, BC AMTA’s Executive Director.
BC AMTA was created by industry, government, educators, and First Nations to help the mining sector hook up with skilled workers as a labour shorter looms. It provides skills upgrades and training to Aboriginal people that want jobs in the mining industry, particularly at operations close to their home communities.
“Industry has demonstrated its support for the BC AMTA model through commitments for 650 jobs and more than $12 million in in-kind contributions. And, while this satisfies stated federal funding requirements, we have yet to receive confirmation of government support. Unfortunately, we can’t have one source of funding without the other,” said Sterritt.
Stikine NDP MLA Doug Donaldson calls the development a blow to skills training in rural areas and says it underscores what he says is the misguided priorities of the BC Liberals.
“On one hand this government is spending tens of thousands of dollars on their JobFest road show in the northwest, meanwhile organization like the BC AMTA that supply skills training for job opportunities are closing because of a lack of funding,” said Donaldson.
BC AMTA says it will continue to search for funding to carry on until the end of July.
Comments
The following letter has been received from Pat Bell, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation:
The Editor
Opinion 250
I would like to start off by acknowledging the great work the BC Aboriginal Mining and Training Association (BC AMTA) does to connect Aboriginal people with careers in B.C.âs mining sector. We do not want to see this valuable service disappear due to a lack of funding. However, there are some inaccuracies in your article âAboriginal Mining Training Program Closingâ that I would like to correct.
BC AMTA is facing federal government funding cuts â not provincial. BC AMTA receives $4.4 million in core funding from the federal government through the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnerships (ASEP) Program, and unfortunately the federal government has ended that program.
Additionally, the funding our government receives through the Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Agreement and the Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Development Agreement is meant for delivering programs, not for supplying core funding. That is why we cannot replace BC AMTAâs lost core funding with our federal LMA or LMDA funds.
We support BC AMTA, and have been working with it on a proposal that supports one of its mining training programs; however, BC AMTA recently withdrew its application due to the inability to secure core funding. We encourage BC AMTA to continue negotiating with the federal government and, once it has secured core funding, we will do all we can to ensure it has the resources it needs to deliver its skills training programs.
We are committed to ensuring British Columbians are receiving the trades and skills training support they need to fill the estimated one million job openings by 2020.
Pat Bell
Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation
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