THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER 5

JOB 5
© i j|JRAINING —neep ts acute

How good are the training facilities students or consult with vocational coun-
for workers who desire training as tech- _sellors are faced with perplexing ques-
nicians, in the various branches of the _ tions in this respect.
forest products industry?

This was the question in the minds of
IWA Regional and International staff
members who recently accepted a cordial
invitation to visit the classes on forest

The second question concerns the
availability of training for |IWA members
who wish to overcome the disadvantages
caused by lack of earlier educational

f : opportunities.

technology at the B.C. Institute of Tech- eee re 3
5 nology, Vancouver. IWA members at- After mingling with students and in-
‘ tending the. Institute as students sug- Strustorsacth the Selig and sve winggule
: gested the tour. well-equipped class rooms and labora-

The fact-finding . expedition was tories, the self-appointed IWA inspectors
prompted by the constant stream of re- Were fully convinced that the Institute
quests from young people in IWA homes OPENS one door to the higher grade job
seeking information about qualifications °PPOrfuntties in HS AGI atLG) CUE! |G
for employment in the industry. The  ‘°essing of wood. Job placement seems
BCIT is part of a broader program re- be no problem for those who success-

quired to develop skills now demanded fully graduate.

P by technological change. One regrettable feature was appar-
' Two major questions have recently ent. The Institute cannot accommodate
I “confronted the IWA.” ~~‘ all those who seek admittance. .Appli-

How best can the Union help to bridge | cants ‘must be screened as to academic
the gap between the vocational training background and experience. Costs of
in secondary schools and the industry student subsistence and tuition present
while maintaining seniority rights? This an obstacle for many. Discussion on this
applies mainly to the thirty per cent of | point led to the suggestion that IWA
secondary school students, described by Local Unions might well consider scholar-
vocational counsellors as “non-academ- ships and bursaries to aid deserving

os ee

(ae ee eS

bar t mere? Gene eet

i ics” who have neither the means nor students from IWA homes in addition to
é Be tee MObERN Kamiyr continuous digester for the aptitudes for university education. those already offered for university edu-
4 dias ae, Pe 2 ciseater is usec! In all ne IWA officials invited to address Grade 12 _ cation.

BRIDGE REPORT

In 1957 the Royal Commission on Canada’s Economic Pros-
pects, the Gordon Commission, ordered a study of the man-
power problem, which was made by the Economics and Re-
search Branch of the Department of Labour. One of the
conclusions of this study was that Canada was likely to be
short of skilled workers in the immediate future, and that “ex-
panded and improved facilities are required for the basic
education of youth and for the training of engineers, scientists,
and other professionals, as well as of tradesmen and tech-
nicians.”

Shortly after the publication of this study, the British ~
Columbia Department of Education’s Curriculum Advisory
Board appointed a committee, directed by Mr. D. E. Bridge of
the Department of Labour, Ottawa, to survey “The Need for
Advanced Technical and Vocational Training in the Province
of British Columbia.” The report of this committee, known as
the Bridge Report, was submitted in April, 1960.

Largely as a result of the study of Canada’s skilled man-
power needs carried out by the Department of Labour, the
Federal Government decided to assist the Provincial Govern-
ments to provide the necessary post-secondary training estab-
lishments. On December 20, 1960, the Technical and Vocational
Training Assistance Act became law. It authorised the Minister
of Labour to “enter into an agreement with any province ., ,
to provide for the payment by Canada to the province of con-
tributions in respect of the costs incurred by the province in
undertaking a program of technical and vocational training in

: < ST ae

1 IWA STAFF MEMBERS Grant MacNeil, regional education director; Oliver McMillan,

the province ...” The Federal Government’s contributions
al plywood Se oockaor os = ieaigeorig ial agai Maly ps at ee sche a were set by the Act at 50% of both capital and operating costs,

ie tndimatiars ut the inaiate, Thay are looking at a tensile testing machine With financial assistance available from the Federal Gov-
t See “JOB TRAINING” — Pages 6, 7