TRAINING UPDATE

Training Records

When members of Local 506 are dispatched to work at construction sites they require proof of training for WHMIS and Fall Protection (minimum) and, depending on the work they are asked to do, for any of several other programs – Propane Safety, Hoisting & Rigging, Traffic Control, and training in work with a number of types of equipment. (You can check Certifications on this website for information about all the types of certification offered by Ambercroft Training Centre.)

As soon as a member completes a program, his training record is updated. If they haven’t had one taken by us already, we will take their picture. They are then mailed a card with their picture on one side and their complete training record on the other. A new card is produced every time; it’s comparatively low cost to do this. The back of the card can contain the titles of up to 64 courses. This is definitely an improvement over carrying a different card for each course.

If a member needs proof of training before the card arrives in the mail, the Training Centre can fax his or her training record directly to the worksite. Employers or supervisors often call the Centre to request such information about workers who have just been dispatched to work with them.

All of these things – Training Records easily updated and accessed, photo ID with individual training histories, and the ability to fax information directly to worksites – represent technological advances over the last ten years.

Construction Craft Worker certification – one last time

The grandparenting period is over. Some members who have applied for certification may still be waiting to receive their certificates, but the process has been completed for 1,000 Local 506 members. To reiterate what has been said many times – no member who does not have a certificate will lose a job or receive a paycut as a result.

Anyone who wants to get a certificate now can still do so, but they must do what is already required of apprentices: they must write and pass the Construction Craft Worker trade examination. Anyone with proof of sufficient experience as a general labourer in construction can apply for the certificate and write the exam.

As has been the experience in Alberta where the grandparenting period ended in 2002, we expect there will be a demand for pre-exam courses beginning next year or the year after.