Ontario Construction News staff writer
The Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development has resumed in-person trade exams at its local offices in public health unit regions that have moved into Step 1 of the Roadmap to Reopen.
“Tradespeople are the backbone of our communities. Resuming their exams means more apprentices and journeypersons on our worksites as soon as possible.
They build our future hospitals, roads, pipelines, broadband and homes. These workers play – and will continue to play – a critical role in our economic prosperity,” said Monte McNaughton, minister of labour, training and skills development.
As the exam centres re-open, we are committed to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of clients and staff. Safety measures will have to be followed at all the centres, including but not limited to: face coverings, physical distancing and enhanced cleaning.
Anyone who had requested exams during the provincial lockdown will be contacted to rebook an exam sitting and priority will be given to clients/groups with the greatest need.
In the areas of the province with a high demand for exams, local offices will explore options to increase capacity to address the backlogs which could include additional sittings at ministry locations.
An emphasis for booking exams may be placed on those who fall within one or more of the following circumstances, at the discretion of the exam centre:
- Compulsory trades;
- Construction-related trades;
- Journeyperson whose candidate status has expired or will expire soon;
- Wage increase or current employment dependent on obtaining Certificate of Qualification;
- Settlement (i.e., Canadian residency, visa) dependent on obtaining Certificate of Qualification; and
- Examinees whose exam sitting was postponed.
Ontario’s skilled trades are vital to the health and growth of the economy, offering careers that lead to secure jobs and a good quality of life, the government statement says.
Further information on the apprenticeship exam centres and the process for writing exams can be found on this site.