New Mohawk College program helps students find long-term, stable employment

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Published May 3, 2021 at 7:38 pm

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Mohawk College in Hamilton announced Monday (May 3) that it joined three other institutions in Canada in offering a new program that could contribute to the country’s economic recovery.

The Material Handling 4.0 pilot program has been designed to help people transition into careers in the supply chain sector.

The sector is mainly comprised of purchasing, manufacturing, inventory management, demand planning, warehousing, transportation, and customer service.

Mohawk is joined by Nova Scotia Community College, Mohawk College, Red River College, and Vancouver Community College in offering the program, which builds upon the training model used by Mohawk College’s City School initiative — combining industry-driven training, individualized student support, and practical work experience to provide comprehensive training services to people who face barriers to employment and education.

“Employers in the supply chain sector are suffering from labour shortages and disruptive technologies have left some workers behind,” said Ron McKerlie, President and CEO of Mohawk College.

“The City School by Mohawk model has had proven success in creating pathways to meaningful employment in Hamilton over the past five years. We are grateful that our partner colleges have chosen to adapt this successful model to train people for supply chain job opportunities in their regions.”

Upon completion of the program, participants receive a micro-credential and employment services to help them transition into long-term, stable employment.

The Material Handling 4.0 pilot program will provide participants with six weeks of industry-specific instruction and a two-week paid work placement, complete with wrap-around supports; such as child care, all required PPE and supplies for work safety, and referrals to support services (legal clinics, housing, health, etc.).

Future Skills Centre (FSC) announced an initial investment of $1.95 million in the first phase of the program at Mohawk College in 2020 to develop and establish the program in the Hamilton area.

Monday, it announced an additional $1.1-million to expand the program to the three additional communities across Canada.

“As we continue to recover from COVID-19, our government is helping jobseekers up-skill and re-skill to fill in demand jobs. Mohawk College’s Material Handling 4.0 project is helping workers transition into new job opportunities within the supply chain sector,” said Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough. “Further investments through the Future Skills Centre will allow new partnerships to expand the project’s reach and continue this important work.”

This program is expected to provide training for 243 people across the four participating colleges.

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