Long lines form to get into popular trades program

[Temporary_User]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmont...gram-1.2642025

A group of would-be crane operators has set up camp at NAIT campus this week to secure a spot in the coveted Crane and Hoist Operator Apprenticeship program.
Ben Swagerman is fifth in line, having arrived on Monday with supplies in tow.
Registration numbers won’t be handed out until Thursday night, and registration itself doesn’t open until Friday – but for Swagerman, the wait is worth it.

Obviously there is quite the demand for the program, but what is the actual demand for crane operators?

We are seeing quite a few unemployed or under-employed university graduates, I would hate to see the same thing happen to college graduates. Too much money spent and time lost.

[Nufy]

Good news for my cousins husband.

He is a Crane instructor for NAIT.

Job Security.

[2ArmBands]

That's kind of the beauty of the apprenticeship program. You may lose some time however the actually money lost in form of technical training and books etc is minimal. When I completed my apprenticeship program there were many grants and bursaries that supplemented my EI while attending training. Sometimes I even came out ahead.

Don't know if the programs are the same now but that's how it worked for me as an Electrician.

[GP_Matt]

Is it just me, or is this a ridiculous way to hand out spots.
Surely there is a better way to select applicants than having them wait in the hallway for a week.

[Northendzone]

^ waiting in line is clearly something that robots can do, until they become our overlords.....

i'd assume that the program teaches people how to safely operate overhead cranes. if you look at some of those cranes working at the downtown highrises, it would easily be quite the disaster if something went wrong during some of those large lifts......

[Regular_John]

Originally Posted by GP_Matt

Is it just me, or is this a ridiculous way to hand out spots.
Surely there is a better way to select applicants than having them wait in the hallway for a week.

Fight Club style.

I come home, and there's a guy standing on our front porch. The guy's at the front door with his second black shirt and pants in a brown paper sack and he's got the last three items, a white towel, an army surplus mattress, and a plastic bowl, set on the porch railing. From an upstairs window, Tyler and I peek out at the guy, and Tyler tells me to send the guy away.

"Get rid of him," Tyler tells me. "He's too young."

I ask how young is too young?

"It doesn't matter," Tyler says. "If the applicant is young, we tell him he's too young. If he's fat, he's too fat. If he's old, he's too old. Thin, he's too thin. White, he's too white. Black, he's too black."

This is how Buddhist temples have tested applicants going back for bahzillion years, Tyler says. You tell the applicant to go away, and if his resolve is so strong that he waits at the entrance without food or shelter or encouragement for three days, then and only then can he enter and begin the training.

[peter12]

Being a crane operator on a pipeline construction crew is easily the most lucrative and safest job. Some crane operators make upwards of 200k.

[Nufy]

And it is a skilled position.

You are responsible for handling massive amounts of weight in sometimes extreme conditions high above everyone else on the job site.

[Vulcan]

Yeah, it's a good trade and the money is good. The trouble with construction trades are that they are boom and bust, so this should be taken into account.

[2ArmBands]

Originally Posted by Vulcan

Yeah, it's a good trade and the money is good. The trouble with construction trades are that they are boom and bust, so this should be taken into account.

True... But that is not a lot different than other sectors in Alberta. Oil and gas being the obvious one.

[Northendzone]

i think there are 5 or so cranes currently on the go in quarry park......it is likely one of those feilds where it likely tkaes a while to get a steady job, but nwhen you do.....BAM - easy street....

[Rerun]

When told about the long lines currently at NAIT, Hancock suggested it may be the result of a registration issue rather than a problem with the number of spots available.
The real problem is people not willing to line up and wait for a spot in the programs, he suggested.

“It’s not a question of not having the opportunity – the opportunity is there,” he said.
He commended those who chose to line up for days to enroll in the program, saying that dedication shows good priorities.

“It’s great to see students that are eager to advance their education, who are willing to do what they believe they need to do to get ahead,” he said, adding “that’s the type of enthusiasm you want to see in the trades.”

What a brilliant guy. He should run for the PC party leadership.

[Brewmaster]

Why are they using a first come first serve approach for post-secondary education? Shouldn't applicants be chosen based on merit, like other programs?

[You Need a Thneed]

Construction Trades are no more boom and bust than most other areas of work.

Either way, crane operators is something that always going to be needed. They are needed in many places for ongoing maintenance of things, not just building things.

It's not just for tower cranes, its for any crane of 15 tonnes capacity or more.

[You Need a Thneed]

Originally Posted by Brewmaster

Why are they using a first come first serve approach for post-secondary education? Shouldn't applicants be chosen based on merit, like other programs?

Probably have way more people who have the required "Merit" than they can handle. It gets to be fairly difficult to sort through everyone and determine who deserves it most. Sometimes you just have to have a line.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by You Need a Thneed

Construction Trades are no more boom and bust than most other areas of work.

Either way, crane operators is something that always going to be needed. They are needed in many places for ongoing maintenance of things, not just building things.

It's not just for tower cranes, its for any crane of 15 tonnes capacity or more.

I'm speaking just from my personal experience of 35 years as a construction tradesman but it seemed to me that any economic downturn would effect the construction industry first. That didn't necessarily mean that I was out of work (although it did at times) but I needed to be more flexible and willing to work anywhere.

I'm not saying not to go into the construction trades, it can be a great way of life but be aware of the pitfalls and plan for when things aren't so good.

[NuclearFart]

Originally Posted by You Need a Thneed

Probably have way more people who have the required "Merit" than they can handle. It gets to be fairly difficult to sort through everyone and determine who deserves it most. Sometimes you just have to have a line.

They should have one of those arcade crane/claw machines, but use applications instead of stuffed animals.

[GP_Matt]

I don't know what's wrong with throwing the applications down a flight of stairs and picking the ones that land the highest up.

[Free Ben Hur!]

Whats more, many of the successful applicants will get weeded out through the training process and eventually by employers. Not everybody has the aptitude, vision, touch, confidence and demeanor to be a crane operator. This is particularly true for operators of large cranes. Everybody wants fly jets - few do.

If you are looking at being an operating engineer as a career consider that you will be away from home a lot unless you live in Fort McMurray or greater Edmonton because that's where most of the industrial work is and industrial construction employs the most OE's on a per sector basis.