I want to thank the member from Chatham-Kent–Leamington for his leader-ship in southwestern Ontario promoting the skilled trades.

Speaker, our government has an ambitious plan to build, working together with Ontario’s leading construction unions and builders.

Last week, I joined leaders representing 14 private sector unions from across our province, including Marc Arsenault, business manager for the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, who represents over 150,000 hard-working tradespeople who are building our future. Alongside our Minister of Finance and the Solicitor General, we announced an additional $40 million for our Skills Development Fund. We’re expanding the fund to include training for high school students for the first time in Ontario history. We’re on a mission to get more young people into our skilled trades.

I’ll have more to share in our supplementary.

Our Skills Development Fund is investing $3.5 million to support four building trades province-wide training initiatives. These programs will help nearly 2,000 young people launch rewarding careers in the skilled trades and put them on a path to union-sponsored apprenticeships. Training like this is how we’re preparing the next generation for six-figure salaries, delivering our ambitious infrastructure plans, including building 1.5 million homes by 2031. Within two years, we funded 388 training projects and trained nearly 400,000 workers for in-demand jobs across every sector.

Mr. Speaker, to build an Ontario that leaves no one behind, labour, government and business must work together. We need all hands on deck, and we’re not slowing down.

Speaker, a recent 3M Canada survey shows that although 96% of Canadians believe that the country’s workforce needs more skilled trades workers, 76% also said they would never pursue a career in the skilled trades. This is worrisome news for Ontario. Skilled trades are vital for our economy.

Current projections show that by 2025 one in five new jobs in Ontario will be in the skilled trades. Our government must continue to act by addressing the ongoing labour shortage in the skilled trades.

Can the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development tell the House what our government is doing to get more people working in the trades?

I am pleased that our government is making the necessary investments in our skilled trades system. That said, we must make sure that these good, meaningful jobs are within reach of everyone. Unfortunately, the apprenticeship process has lacked diversity, as demonstrated by the low percentage of apprentices from under-represented groups. A diverse workforce is an important asset for Ontario’s economy. Ensuring diversity is essential for many reasons, including promoting individuals’ different strengths and skills, which leads to better outcomes and problem-solving on the job site.

Can the minister please explain how the Skills Development Fund will provide opportunities for those wishing to pursue a career in the trades?