“One lady was 60 years old, a great-grandma,” Ewing recalls. “She wanted to show her family that it’s never too late to start working. She got into a training program, got her certification and she’s still employed to this day.”
As manager at the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies Creighton Work Prep Centre (SIIT-CWPC), Ewing hopes to foster more success stories.
SIIT-CWPC is run through a partnership that includes the Saskatchewan Ministry of the Economy, Woodland Cree Enterprises Inc., Northlands College, Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation and Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies. It is one of eight SIIT centres in Saskatchewan.
Located on Bereskin Avenue, the centre has been open since July 2014 with a focus on offering local learners skills training and certification in the construction and industrial sectors.
“The training we provide needs to lead to employment,” says Ewing. “Employment is our number one goal.”
Ewing says 90 per cent of clients are aboriginal, and are based mainly in Flin Flon, Creighton and Denare Beach.
On my visit to the centre on Wednesday, the centre’s main classroom was full, with eight men hunched over their written exams in the three-day WTA Certified Chainsaw Training class.
The following day, instructor Jim Hayes took students out into the woods around Maraiche Lake Road in Saskatchewan for hands-on training.
Hayes says the chainsaw safety certificate helps students get work clearing forested areas for power lines, seismic lines and helipads, or in forest firefighting.
The students in this class are currently laid off, but are often employed as contract workers with Jacobson Logging. Contractor John Jacobson is also completing the course. The chainsaw safety course training helps the students to position themselves to get jobs when contracts are available.
In the past, Jacobson needed to leave the community for training. He says having access to a local training facility is a game-changer.
“It’s been excellent,” he says. “This cuts my expenses in half.”In her years as a job coach, Myrna Ewing has helped countless people get a leg up in the workforce.
In addition to scheduled courses, services on offer at the centre include a database of screened job seekers, access to a job coach, and a computer lab and small library for those looking for a job or skills training.
“We are very client-focused,” Ewing says, noting that the centre uses thorough one-on-one assessments to support those searching for jobs or training.
The centre has an open-door policy, with many services available to local residents on both sides of the border.
Ewing says she often connects with Manitoba-based services to help clients get the funding and the support they need, no matter where they reside.
SIIT-CWPC is located on an urban reserve near Northlands College, at 687 Bereskin Avenue. A similar organization used to operate out of the Creighton Recreation Culture and Tourism office under the name Tawow PBCN Employment & Training Centre.
Note: The print version of this article incorrectly stated that students in the class are currently employed.
