Trades in the Forest Industry is a high school career awareness program that allows students to familiarize themselves with a variety of trades within various forest product manufacturing facilities. Hosted over a two-day period, selected students and their teachers visit sawmills, pulp mills, oriented strand board mills, plywood plants and other manufacturing facilities. At each facility students receive an overview of company operations and available trades as well as a safety orientation. Following this, groups of up to five students spend time job shadowing various tradespeople. Here the students can see and learn what the trade is really like and have an opportunity to interview each tradesperson. Students learn about the many day-to-day functions, working conditions, wages, skills required and get personal career anecdotes and recommendations from the tradespeople. And its not just about learning about one particular trade. Students spend time with each tradesperson so that they get information on a variety of trades and thus help them in deciding which trade they really want to pursue.

Participants also get the opportunity to tour post-secondary trades training programs such as The College of New Caledonia’s Trades Department to see the kind of trades training that they can expect and learn about the entry requirements for the various programs.

Trades Covered
(varies from program to program)
Carpenter
Computer Technician
Electrician
Heavy Duty Mechanic
Machinist
Metal Fabricator
MiIlwright
Planerman
Saw Filer
Power Engineer
Pipe Fitter
Welder

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