Indigenous Women: Made for the trades
By Shawna McKenzie
CHIPPEWAS OF RAMA FIRST NATION – Strong. Innovative. Resilient. Resourceful. Qualities necessary to succeed in the skilled trades, qualities Indigenous Women and Two Spirit happen to possess – making them the perfect fit for careers in the skilled trades. Empowering them to enter the trades is what the Skilled Trades team at Keepers of the Circle (“Keepers”) is doing.
Keepers is creating opportunities for Indigenous Women and Two Spirit to develop the skills and confidence to enter the trades, armed with the tools and supports needed to succeed. From pre-employment essential skills training to pre-apprenticeship and Registered Apprenticeship Agreements, Keepers is dedicated to the recruitment and retention of the next wave of Indigenous Women to enter the skilled trades, where they can then make a difference in the Canadian labour shortage as well as helping to alleviate the housing crisis. The goal is to create Indigenous Journeywomen who are Red Seal certified to work in their trade anywhere across Canada and Keepers is raising awareness of the various pathways into the trades and providing supports along the journey.
The team at Keepers of the Circle is actively recruiting those who want to change careers or embark on a journey for the very first time.
“We recognize Indigenous Women are the heartbeat of our communities – they’re raising families first, before they think of doing anything for themselves or their future selves,” says Keepers of the Circle Executive Director, Bertha Cormier.
It is for this reason Keepers offers their core curriculum – Culture, Confidence & Competence (CCC) – to Indigenous women and Two Spirit citizens across Turtle Island. The CCC is a free 8-week, culturally rooted pre-employment and essential skills development program offered multiple times a year, both online and in-person at the Keepers Training Centre Kinoomaagegamik in Kirkland Lake.
CCC evolved out of the successful Aboriginal Women in Mining (AWIM) program, which was designed when Impact Benefit Agreements were being negotiated and Indigenous women were excluded from the decision-making process. AWIM was created to help equalize the economic benefits attributed to Indigenous women by creating pathways for them to get hired in the mines, assisting them with the Common Core Modules among other industry-specific certificates. With an ever-changing economic landscape though, Keepers recognized that not all women wanted to work in mining. It was then expanded to include multiple career explorations during Career Week, along with job coaching, while still providing cultural elements, as well as Mental Health First Aid and Mental Health First Aid First Nations.
“CCC is a truly holistic approach to pre-employment training,” says Cormier.
And the numbers tell a story.
Since AWIM’s inception in 2013 and then the CCC, over 700 Indigenous women and Two Spirit folk have received training with more than half of those going on to successful work placements and direct hire. Many chose further education, and some are taking alternative training with Keepers of the Circle, who are presently training Indigenous Women in low carbon and modular panel construction.
Keepers offers basic construction training at Kinomaagegamik. The women are given the opportunity to acclimatize and get comfortable with tool safety, before they embark on a journey to Tooketree Passive Homes in Baysville, Ont., where they are taught how to construct low carbon SEED panels that are used in Green Construction and housing in Northeastern Ontario.
They are leading the way; so much so, that Keepers is preparing to open a modular panel factory in Kirkland Lake, Ont., in 2025. The factory will prioritize employing Indigenous Women and Two-Spirit folk and will be a year-round training facility.
This time next year, Keepers of the Circle will have a fully operational Modular Panel Factory and Training Facility, that will train and employ Indigenous Women and at the same time shift the landscape for what it means to embrace new ways of creating workspaces with Indigenous Women and Two Spirit folks in mind. Even the factory itself is designed by an Indigenous women-led architecture firm out of Hamilton, Ont., Smoke Architecture. Indigenous women have the solutions and are implementing them.
Dorm-style housing and on-site 24-hour childcare will allow the women to come to work, build modular panels that will help alleviate the housing crisis. Keepers of the Circle has been operating childcare centres in Northeastern Ontario at both of their hub locations in Kirkland Lake and Temiskaming Shores for decades, so providing onsite childcare was a logical consideration to the factory design.
Whether a woman chooses employment or apprenticeship, Keepers provides a holistic support system, with their “once a member, always a member” unofficial philosophy.
“It’s important to meet a woman where she’s at, and never discourage her. We encourage the women to stay in touch with us and check in. Just because someone isn’t ready today, doesn’t mean they won’t be in six months,” says Cormier.
This is why CCC is offered seasonally, with a break in the summer months. Fall, winter, and spring cohorts are offered and placements and follow ups are ongoing. Partnerships are also key to the success of Keepers of the Circle programs and as such, are open to hearing from employers, especially in Northeastern Ontario.
If you or someone you know is interested in CCC or wants to find out more about Indigenous Women in Skilled Trades, or you are an Indigenous tradesperson, Keepers want to hear from you. The fall cohort of CCC starts September 9, 2024. Registration is now open. Visit www.keepersofthecircle.com or e-mail: training@keepersofthecircle.com.