Sask. high school students learning trades skills on the job

Many high school students in Regina are not only studying to secure a career, they're already learning on the job.

All across the country, there are concerns about the shortage of skilled labour. While there is debate about how many trades workers are needed over the next decade, there is also a strong push for more tradespeople in Saskatchewan.

Over the past few years, a boom in construction, oil and gas, and mining exposed a shortage of skilled workers. It has some students bypassing post-secondary education on their way to a good job.

I don't want to be a doctor or a lawyer or anything — so trades are perfect.- Nelson Harlow

In Regina, Grade 11 and 12 students get the chance to earn credits while learning a trade and racking up hundreds of hours towards an apprenticeship. By the time they graduate, many of them will already be starting a job, along with training. 

Five days a week, Nelson Harlow and other high school students spend their school day building a house in north central Regina. It isn't a typical math class, but it's a perfect fit for Harlow
    
"I don't particularly like school," Harlow said. "I don't want to be a doctor or a lawyer or anything — so trades are perfect."

In June, Habitat for Humanity will hand the key to a family in need. The teacher on the job, Eldon Hall, is also a carpenter.

"We run the site like a workplace," Hall explained. The students must show up at 7:50 a.m. and get their tools ready and belts on by eight o'clock. They get two 15 minute coffee breaks. 

"They're on the roof framing, on ladder installing windows, they put up the siding," Hall said. "It's up to them. I don't think there's anywhere else where you'll find someone coming out of high school with that kind of experience."

Whether it's carpentry, plumbing, or electrical, each student earns 800 apprenticeship hours. It's a jump-start on their path to becoming journeyman.

Kristopher Heiberg, 16, relishes working with his hands, rather than sitting in a classroom.

"I can't sit there all day. It's really boring. I get into trouble," he said. "I'm good here, though. I like building houses and working on stuff."

Shifting ideology in high school education

A few years ago, the Regina public school system created a training program called Campus Regina to introduce students to different professions and trades. Students can learn both core and elective credits while exploring engineering, health sciences, welding, auto mechanics, plumbing, culinary arts and other areas.

Campus Regina was created because there's a skilled labour shortage, but also because the school system wanted to address the fact that two-thirds of its students don't attend university.

Principal Jason Coleman said it's all about asking young people, 'What do you want to do?'

"Do you want to be a labourer all your life? That's fine. Lots of people make really good livings doing that," Coleman said. "Do you want to be an apprentice? Make a little bit more. Do you want to be a journeyperson and make top of the line? Yeah, we talk about that."

Thousands of workers could be needed

The mining, oil and gas, and construction sectors all predict they will be short thousands of skilled workers over the next decade.

But, a recent plunge in oil prices provides a reminder of how susceptible some industries can be to a boom and bust cycle.

For Harlow, he's confident he'll find a job because there will always be leaking toilets, cars that won't run, and houses to be fixed or built.

"I don't see us stopping or cutting off our population any time soon so there's always going to be more growth and more houses for more people," Harlow said.