Hamilton-based Ontario Shipyards, previously Heddle Shipyards, is set to receive $10 million to train workers in shipbuilding and repair. Pictured: Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Photo Credit: Doug Ford/X.
Hamilton-based Ontario Shipyards, previously Heddle Shipyards, is set to receive $10 million to train workers in shipbuilding and repair as part of the Ontario government’s $1.4 billion Skills Development Fund (SDF).
Premier Doug Ford was at Ontario Shipyard’s Port Weller Dry Docks Shipyard in St. Catharines last week to announce the funding.
Ontario Shipyards will deliver training, re-skilling, and up-skilling programs for careers in the millwright, welding, electrical and painting trades at their three facilities.
In addition to the St. Catharines location, Ontario Shipyards has a Hamilton Shipyard at 208 Hillyard Street and a Thunder Bay Shipyard at 401 Shipyard Road.
Courses are set to include ship building and ship repair, shipyard orientation and health and safety procedures, professional development, leadership training, and mentoring.
Premier Doug Ford commented on the announcement, saying, “We’re proud to invest in the workers who are powering Ontario’s world-class shipbuilding industry here in St. Catharines and in communities across the province.”
“We need all levels of government to step up and recognize the extraordinary potential of this industry and its workers by ensuring that much-needed Canadian vessels are built in Ontario, by Ontario shipbuilders,” he continued.
Over the next decade in Ontario, nearly 9,500 job openings are forecasted for construction millwrights and industrial mechanics, over 9,000 for welders, over 14,600 for electricians, and nearly 6,600 for painters and decorators.
Shaun Padulo, President & CEO of Ontario Shipyards, thanked Premier Ford for the investment.
“Historically, Ontario was the epicentreof shipbuilding in Canada, providing livelihoods to thousands,” said Padulo.
“The Ontario Shipyard Modernization Project, made possible through the Skills Development Fund from the Province of Ontario, marks a significant step towards reclaiming Ontario’s legacy.”
Ontario Shipyards also received $3.7 million in 2023 to create training opportunities for local shipbuilders.
The government said at the time that the funding would “help modernize Ontario’s shipyards to attract lucrative shipbuilding contracts and thousands of well-paying jobs to the province.”
The $10 million investment is in addition to the $3.6 million from the Skills Development Fund that was recently announced as part of four skilled trades training projects and one training centre expansion project in Hamilton.
Those previous funds are going towards the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Local 1916 (operating as Millwright Local 1916), the International Association of Bridge, Structural, and Ornamental Iron Workers Local 736, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 105.
Applications are also now open for the government’s fifth round of SDF Training Stream, with up to $260 million in available funding.
Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis until Oct. 4, 2024, with organizations such as non-profits, Indigenous Skills and Employment Training agreement holders, unions, industry and employer associations, municipalities, and other organizations eligible to apply for funding through the province’s Transfer Payment Ontario portal.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
