Minister Poilievre congratulates first Canada Apprentice Loan recipients from SAIT and highlights number of apprenticeship grants benefitting residents of the Calgary area
CALGARY, April 17, 2015 /CNW/ - The Honourable Pierre Poilievre, Minister of Employment and Social Development, along with the Honourable Diane Ablonczy, Member of Parliament for Calgary–Nose Hill, today congratulated the first recipients of the Canada Apprentice Loan at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT). Launched in January of this year, the Loan provides registered apprentices pursuing technical training in Red Seal trades with access to up to $4,000 per period of technical training. To date, over 5,000 apprentices from across Canada have benefitted from this loan, including nearly 1,900 in Alberta. Nearly 600 recipients of the loan are pursuing their studies at SAIT. He also highlighted the number of apprenticeship grants already provided to apprentices living in the Calgary area.
In his remarks, Minister Poilievre encouraged more Canadians to take advantage of the Canada Apprentice Loan—to learn a trade, gain hands-on experience and seize the opportunities that exist in today's labour market and prepare for the jobs of today and tomorrow.
The Minister went on to explain how the Harper Government's plan to create jobs and help families goes hand in hand. To ensure Canadians keep more of their hard-earned money in their pockets, the Harper Government enhanced the Universal Child Care Benefit, brought in the new Family Tax Cut and made significant improvements to the Child Care Expenses Deduction and the Children's Fitness Tax Credit. These measures allow parents to invest more in their children who will play a role in the future workforce.
Quick Facts
- The Canada Apprentice Loan will help more apprentices complete their training, and it is estimated that at least 26,000 apprentices are expected to benefit from loans each year.
- Since 2006, the Government has provided over 530,000 apprenticeship grants to Canadians. Over 142,000 apprentices in Alberta have received the grants. Close to 30,000 of those grants have benefitted residents in the Calgary area.
- The Universal Child Care Benefit would increase to up to $1,920 per year for children under the age of 6, and parents may receive a benefit of up to $720 per year for each eligible child aged 6 through 17.
- According to Statistics Canada, almost 360,000 people are enrolled in over 400 apprenticeship and skilled trades programs.
- Economic Action Plan 2014 created the Canada Apprentice Loan to provide apprentices registered in a Red Seal trade apprenticeship with access to interest-free loans of up to $4,000 per period of technical training. The loans are interest-free until apprentices complete or leave their apprenticeship training program, up to a maximum of six years.
Quotes
"With several major projects on the horizon it is important that more Canadians have the support they need to complete their apprenticeship training and get the skills they need for the in-demand jobs of today and tomorrow. That is why today it is my pleasure to congratulate the nearly 600 Canada Apprentice Loan recipients from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. In total, nearly 1,900 apprentices in Alberta, and more than 5,000 apprentices from across Canada, are now able to complete their training and continue to pursue their careers in the trades."
– The Honourable Pierre Poilievre, Minister of Employment and Social Development
"Access to education is a top priority at SAIT, and we are pleased to work alongside the Government of Canada to implement this important program. Removing financial barriers for apprentices allows more Canadians to gain the expertise needed to succeed in high-demand careers."
– Dr. David Ross, President and CEO, SAIT Polytechnic
"Until now, apprentices could not benefit from the generous supports to other students such as the Canada Student Loan program; as of this year, apprentices in Canada's Red Seal trades can be sure that the federal government regards them both as post‑secondary learners, and as vitally needed workers. The Canada Apprentice Loan ensures equitable treatment for Canadian trades trainees."
– Nobina Robinson, CEO of Polytechnics Canada
Associated Links
Government of Canada Programs for Apprentices
Backgrounder
Since 2006, our Government has recognized the importance of apprentices to Canada's economy and has made significant investments to help them and the employers that hire them.
Canada Apprentice Loan
To help apprentices in Red Seal trades with the cost of their training and encourage more Canadians to consider a career in the skilled trades, the Canada Apprentice Loan offers interest-free loans of up to $4,000 per period of technical training. The loans are interest-free until recipients complete or leave their apprenticeship training program, up to maximum of six years. Recipients are not required to make their first payment for another six months from the day their interest begins to accrue. It is estimated that at least 26,000 apprentices per year will apply for the loans.
Reducing non-financial barriers for apprentices
The Flexibility and Innovation in Apprenticeship Technical Training pilot project, an initiative of Economic Action Plan 2014, will help reduce non-financial barriers to completing training and obtaining certification by using new learning tools such as in-class simulators, e-learning modules, remote learning sites and video conferencing. This will help apprentices continue working and earning while fulfilling the technical training requirements of their study program. This project could potentially support up to 12 multi-year projects through reallocations of $13 million over four years starting in 2014–15.
Apprenticeship grants
The Apprenticeship Incentive Grant and Apprenticeship Completion Grant are taxable cash grants that encourage Canadians to pursue and complete apprenticeship training in designated Red Seal trades. As a result of these grants, apprentices could be eligible to receive up to $4,000, which can be used to pay for tuition, tools or other expenses. Since 2007, the Government has issued over 530,000 apprenticeship grants.
The Government of Canada also offers a tax credit to employers to encourage them to hire apprentices and a tax deduction for apprentices and tradesmen to help cover the cost of new tools.
The Government will ensure increased awareness of existing financial supports available through Employment Insurance so apprentices can start to receive benefits more quickly while on technical training. Through the Employment Insurance Supplemental Unemployment Benefit plan, employers can also invest more in apprenticeship training by choosing to top up an apprentice's benefits by up to 95 percent of his or her normal wage.
Apprenticeship harmonization
The Government of Canada has provided $4.3 million and the governments of the Atlantic provinces over $3.5 million to harmonize training, certification and standards, leading to increased availability of training, higher apprenticeship completion rates and more labour mobility for apprentices across Atlantic Canada. In turn, these actions mean more jobs and opportunities for workers in the skilled trades and a step forward in addressing the skills shortage faced in certain regions and sectors in Canada.
Post-secondary education
The Government of Canada also provides a range of support—including Canada Student Loans, Canada Student Grants, the Canada Learning Bond and the Canada Education Savings Grant—to help young Canadians pursue and save for their post-secondary education, so that they can acquire the skills and training they need to succeed in the job market and in the future economy.
SOURCE Canada's Economic Action Plan
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