The essential skills for the construction workforce are reading, writing, math, document use, oral communication and English as a Second Language. In 2012, to address gaps in the then rapidly-growing workforce, COAA provided leadership to form a network of Alberta training organizations specializing in assisting construction workers and their employers in identifying and addressing essential skills training:
- Bow Valley College in Calgary;
- Calgary Catholic Immigration Services in Calgary;
- MCC Employment Development in Calgary;
- Metro Community College (Edmonton Public Continuing Education) in Edmonton;
- NorQuest College in Edmonton; and
- Keyano College in Fort McMurray.
Working jointly under the acronym CINESTRA (Construction Industry Network for Essential Skills Training in Alberta) the six learning organizations raised employee/employer awareness and provided a combined course list tailored to our industry and available across the province:
This initiative was made possible through the leadership of COAA the collaborative effort of many individuals and organizations. Eight sponsoring organizations (both labour providers and employer associations) provided generous financial contributions to help to pay for the production and printing of a booklet. Particular acknowledgement was given to the National Literacy Secretariat and Alberta Learning for not only their financial assistance in piloting a number of the programs and services, but also ongoing commitment to advancing the issues that affect literacy in Canada.
The program booklet Tools for Essential Skills Training in Alberta (Building Capacity in Alberta’s Construction Industry) has now been archived, having served its purpose of raising awareness and identifying concrete training solutions for our industry. If you wish to review the archived document, please contact the COAA office at admin@coaa.ab.ca.
