Apprentices gain skills and accreditation through Ontario hydroelectric project
For Sophia Gunner, working on the Lower Mattagami hydroelectric project was an opportunity of a lifetime. As an apprentice carpenter, she assembled and disassembled scaffolding and helped build concrete forms. The work was critical to building a series of large dams 80 kilometres north of Kapuskasing.
“I learned something every day. People encouraged me and taught me the tricks of the trade,” said Gunner.
She is among 70 registered apprentices who worked on the project, which was completed on schedule. Of the 1800 workers on the project, 250 were Aboriginal or Métis. And 10 of them completed their apprenticeships.
Gunner worked year round on the project that started in 2010, even in the dead of winter, when temperatures dipped down to -45 C.
“We always had the vehicle running and to go warm up whenever it was needed. I wore long johns, a pair of jeans and insulated coveralls. I actually preferred it to the heat of the summer,” said Gunner.
Gunner is a member of the Moose Cree First Nation, which holds a 25% stake in the project. Gunner landed the job through SIBI, an employment agency set up by the Moose Cree that helped find First Nations jobs with the project.
Gunner said she approached SIBI after completing a pre-apprenticeship carpentry program in North Bay.
“Without them, there would have been no way of me getting into the Mattagami project. It was great for the learning experience. I needed hours for concrete work and scaffolding,” said Gunner.
The $2.5 billion project has been praised by many as an example of how meaningful partnerships between industry and First Nations can create strong benefits for both parties. In addition to its ownership of the hydroelectric facility, the project has awarded $300 million worth of sub-contracts to Moose Cree businesses.
“The project has helped rejuvenate the Moose Cree community and given our economy a much-needed boost,” Chief Norm Hardisty Jr. stated in a press release. “Many of our members will be able to use the training and new skills they developed to work on other infrastructure projects.”
The hydroelectric project is the largest in northern Ontario in over 50 years.
“I’ve visited the Lower Mattagami site and have a great appreciation of the size and scope of this project as well as the people who have brought the project in on time and on budget,” said Ontario Minister of Energy Bob Chiarelli. “The Lower Mattagami Project will deliver long-term results for our electricity system while providing clean, reliable and affordable electricity for Ontarians.”
Gunner said carpentry has been a lifelong interest and she is glad to be pursuing it as a career. She likes working outdoors, and appreciates the sense of accomplishment she felt from working on a large-scale project.
Her father was a carpenter, and she joked that she always loved the smell of cut wood.
The work does have its challenges. At the start, she lived away from her family, and would only be able to visit on her off time. They eventually all moved to Kapuskasing. But that meant she would she made a three-hour round trip commute to work every day.
But she said the training was excellent and the pay was good. She started out at $15.50 an hour, a wage that rose to $27 by the time she left. And then there was “double double time” – on Saturday and Sundays employees made twice their hourly wage.
“Everybody helped out each other, no matter what level we were at. They didn’t consider me an apprentice. They considered me a carpenter. Worked in different groups every time.”
Gunner is now in the final stretch of her apprenticeship.
She needs to put in some more hours working on residential and commercial buildings before she becomes fully accredited. But her goal, Gunner said, is to work on large projects.
“I would like to work on more dams. I found it interesting how all the trades came together to build it.”