Education & Training
With the goal of providing training and job opportunities for Aboriginal people in the north, the MTS was launched as an Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership (ASEP) program and receives ongoing supplementary support from its partners. Its mandate is to build awareness and strengthen the qualifications of potential employees while matching Northerners with the unprecedented growing number of jobs available in the mining sector. Partners are Yellowknives Dene First Nation, Tli Cho Government, Lutsel K'e Dene First Nation and the North Slave Métis Alliance, along with BHP Billiton Diamonds Inc., Diavik Diamond Mines, De Beers Canada and the Government of the Northwest Territories. MTS solicits training proposals from members, local communities, the business community, Aboriginal joint ventures and non-governmental organizations.
Features:
- Training covers mineral processors and heavy equipment operators as well as security, mine reclamation and apprenticeship programs.
- An underground mining simulator
- Support for families, including childcare, while the participant is away in training
- Training often includes critical job and life skills, as well as financial and life management
For further information: www.minetraining.ca
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Some mining companies provide opportunities for upgrading, skills development and practical workplace learning. Learning opportunities for employees and new recruits often involve both formal education and 'hands on' learning in the workplace through apprenticeship and other specialized training programs. Some training programs have been developed through partnerships between the mining company, the Aboriginal communities and educational institutions. In Canada, all mining companies offer both ongoing workplace safety and job-specific training at the work site. A few examples of company-led training are featured below.
Features:
- EKATI Diamond Mine offers a Mine Training Program for local northern Aboriginal people. This program trains people for underground operations in an eight-week program that combines classroom work with hands-on experience and training underground
- Vale Inco offers training through its Skills Development Centre for workers at the mine and concentrator site. Employees are provided an opportunity to receive practical training to improve their prospects for advancement on the job. The Skills Development Centre has received Adult Basic Education (ABE) designation. Formal programs are offered to give exposure to new employees in engineering, geology and leadership development programs
- Cameco Corporation offers a Workplace Training program at each of its sites. Training is offered for entry level positions as mine worker and underground miner and technical programs for radiation technicians and geological technicians. In-house training programs include supervisory, computer and financial areas and focus on skills development such as environmental technician and safety training
For further information: Consult employer websites and human resources departments.
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Val d'Or Centre for Professional Development
The Val-D'Or Centre for Professional Development provides programs that assist students in acquiring the knowledge and skills required for certain careers in exploration and operations. The programs also prepare students to apply preventative measures and safety measures required in each occupation.
- The Mineral Extraction Program teaches students how to do secondary blasting, bolting of walls and work related to timbering, backfilling, mucking, drilling, and blasting of rock faces. Students must have a secondary studies diploma (DES); or be at least 18 years of age and have all the required prerequisites; and must obtain a General Explosives Permit
- The Machine Operations, Mineral Processing for Ore Treatment program teaches students how to fragment ore, evaluate milling and classification circuits, concentrate ore by floatation, produce gold ore concentrates by dissolving soluble materials. The program also teaches students appropriate techniques for the treatment and disposal of residues from the mineral concentration process. Students must have a secondary studies diploma (DES); or be at least 18 years of age and have all the required prerequisites;
- The Diamond Drilling program teaches students knowledge and skills unique to the diamond drilling industry. The program covers topics such as common geological terms communicated in the work place and explores techniques used in the transportation of materials and/or equipment. Students must have a secondary studies diploma (DES); or be at least 18 years of age and have all the required prerequisites; and must obtain a General Explosives Permit
Features:
- Scholarships are available. For further information contact the college's main office
- Programs focus on increasing the efficiency and safety of exploration and mining processes
- Provides a structured learning environment for mining related careers
For further information: Val d'Or Centre for Professional Development
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SIIT Process Operations Technician Program
SIIT -Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies, is governed by Saskatchewan's First Nations but also operates within the Saskatchewan provincial post-secondary system. The institution endeavours to develop unique programming to meet the growing vocational and technical training needs of all the First Nation communities and has been training and educating First Nation and non-First Nation people in the province for over 30 years.
The Process Operations Technician Program provides industrial training for Saskatchewan's Northern residents and to address a growing need for qualified workers in the resource extraction industries. Students develop the knowledge and skills to become operating personnel in a wide range of processing facilities.
Features:
- This is two year certificate program and successful graduates receive the SIIT Process Operation Technician Certificate and write the Saskatchewan 4th Class Power Engineering exam. The students also obtain all the safety tickets required by industry.
- Curriculum covers an introduction to heavy oil recovery and upgrading.
- Students study the Gas Process Operation Level C from SAIT.
- Students are required to do a four-week (160 hours) practicum as part of their 4th Class Power Engineering qualifications and a second two-weeks (80 hours) practicum in process operations.
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