Dear Horticulture & Agriculture Stakeholders, Partners and Training Providers
It is with sadness, that I bring you the news of the changes to come for the future of HortEducation.ca.
On April 30, 2014 the BC government released the “BC’s Skills’ for Jobs Blueprint”. Within this report 29 recommendations that have been mandated for completions by the BC government.
Of these changes, three (3) directly affect the future of all Industry Training Organizations (ITO’s) one of which is HEBC.
- #11 The employer engagement, training plan validation, and standards/program development setting functions of Industry Training Organizations (ITOs) should be brought into the ITA, with industry expertise and the infrastructure of industry subject matter expert committees that ITOs have developed to inform standards development/updating incorporated into the ITA’s core functions.
- #12 Sector Advisory Councils should be created to increase the direct role of industry in planning and decision making. Councils should strive for representation by employers rather than employer associations or consult- ants, and should include organized labour.
- #15 Sector Advisory Councils should be asked to advise government on the relevance and need for specific policy directions for each sector, with resulting recommendations backed up by clear evidence relating to projected impact on achieving demand/supply alignment targets. These policy issues may include the need for re-introduction of compulsory certification, apprentice quotas/ratios, expanded opportunities for challenging for trades credentials, etc.
Over the next several months HEBC will continue to support our trades, apprentices and sponsors while assisting ITA in transitioning our collective expertise into their organization. We have been directed by the ITA to have this completed by Oct 31, 2014 at which time all funding ceases.
Our intention is to complete existing ITA deliverables as per our agreement and continue administration in a reduced capacity so as to support sponsoring apprentices, maintaining learning resources, and organizing practical assessments.
On a positive note, HEBC has grown our trades over 200% since its inception in 2006, which is the highest growth for our trades in history. HEBC has been acknowledged as innovative and a leader in new trade development as well as support for existing apprentices
We appreciate your support and look forward to continued success as we transition into this new model of Apprenticeships in BC.
If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact:
CEO, Anne Kadwell – [email protected]
Chair Bruce McTavish – [email protected]
Vice-Chair Pat Perry – [email protected]
All the best in your future endeavors,
Anne Kadwell