Ottawa – March 31, 2008 - The Canadian Apprenticeship Forum-Forum canadien sur l’apprentissage (CAF-FCA) has just completed a pilot series of Employer Engagement forums. The CAF-FCA partnered with members of the apprenticeship community across Canada to host events for employers in the construction, manufacturing, transportation, and service industries. The goal of the forums was to engage in a constructive dialogue with employers about the business case for apprenticeship training.

Conducted in collaboration with the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC), the two studies compliment the CAF-FCA's groundbreaking 2006 investigation into the return on apprenticeship training investment for employers.

The forum events provided employers with the opportunity to learn about the findings of the CAF-FCA’s groundbreaking Return on Training Investment study. The study surveyed 443 employers in 15 different trades across Canada to gather information on their experiences with respect to the direct costs and benefits of apprenticeship training. The key finding of this study was that hiring an apprentice improves the bottom line: for every $1 of direct costs spent on apprenticeship training, an employer receives, on average, a benefit of up to $1.38.

Since December 2007, over 100 employers representing the construction, manufacturing, transportation and service industries, have participated in five regional forum events in British Columbia, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Some highlights of the events included:

• Employer generated dialogue with a mix of small, medium and large employers from a variety of industries
• Tips from a chartered accountant on incentives and tax credits available to employers who hire apprentices
• A talk on intergenerational differences and how they impact employers’ abilities to hire and retain today’s youth
• Catering by first-year apprentices from Akerley Campus at the Nova Scotia forum

Employer champion, Patrick Waunch of Rambow Mechanical, who has been in the business for over 43 years stated at the British Columbia forum, “By training my own apprentices, I not only ensure my company has skilled labour, I also reduce my hiring and recruitment costs; gain journeypersons with training and experience specific to my needs; and have a lower turnover rate.”

According to Andy Camm, a Sous Chef at the Delta Hotel in Halifax, Nova Scotia, “The forum was a great networking opportunity to connect with other employers. Learning about the Return on Training Investment study has inspired me to continue to promote the apprenticeship training as an investment in the future of the apprentice and the industry as a whole, with any employers who are not currently hiring apprentices.”

The CAF-FCA is a not-for-profit, multi-partite organization bringing together the key constituents within the apprenticeship community through research, discussion and promotion. A report summarizing the forum findings will be available in the early fall.

For more information:

Debbie Miller,
Communications Manager
613-235-4004 ext. 207
debbie_miller@caf-fca.org
www.caf-fca.org