Electricians work at the new Manitoba Building Trades Institute. (TANYA PALSON / MBTI)
The urban garden area at the Manitoba Building Trades Institute. (TANYA PALSON / MBTI)
WINNIPEG — Manitoba Building Trades has opened a new $15 million skilled trades training facility in Winnipeg.
Located at 225 McPhillips Street, the Manitoba Building Trades Institute will support the critical need for skilled trade workers in Manitoba through a coordinated model of recruitment, training, employment, and advancement to ensure entry and retention in the skilled trades.
“A coordinated model of skilled trade recruitment and training is something that our province is in desperate need of,” said Sudhir Sandhu, CEO of Manitoba Building Trades.
“The building trade unions are no strangers to significant investments in training, it’s one of the reasons our workforce is a preferred choice for building some of Manitoba’s biggest projects. MBTI is just another piece in the training network our unions have been offering Manitoba for decades.”
The aquaponics lab at the Manitoba Building Trades Institute. (TANYA PALSON / MBTI)
The new facility features five technology classrooms, a computer lab, an 80-seat auditorium, an exhibition hall, an aquaponic greenhouse, outdoor gardens and apiary, 30,000 square feet of practical training areas, and the 1919 Centennial Atrium — the future home to the 1919 General Strike exhibit curated by the Manitoba Museum.
“For far too long, the construction trades were not one of the first choices when choosing a career path after high school,” said Marc Lafond, president of Manitoba Building Trades.
“Skilled trades are high paying jobs, you work with your head and your hands, you physically see your accomplishments daily. Of course, I’m biased, but the skilled trades are where it’s at.”
