The Ontario Trucking Association, the Canadian Trucking Alliance and its provincial associations have been lobbying all levels of government on the need to increase training support to the trucking industry.
Today, the Government of Canada officially announced a $46 million program to help the industry deal with the driver shortage and training of potential truck drivers and transportation workers.
“This is great news for the Ontario trucking industry,” said OTA Chair James Steed, “There will undoubtably be a lot of immediate interest from the trucking industry to receive some of this funding, so I encourage OTA members to act quickly to make use of this great opportunity.”
This program offers financial incentives and grants to employers across the trucking and logistics sector. There are five ways carriers can take advantage of the program:
New Driver Training Grants for All Ages: Provides training for a new truck drivers, either a new hire OR a current employee looking to become a truck driver and receive up to $10,000 in training grants and an additional $10,000 in wage incentives to support employers while they ensure new drivers are road ready.
New Wage Incentives for In-demand Jobs: Hiring for those hard-to-fill roles? Bring on a new employee in a non-driving, in-demand job and receive up to $10,000 in wage incentives.
Student Work Placements: Provide a post-secondary student with a work-integrated learning opportunity and receive up to $7,000.
Employer Wage Incentives for Youth: Give an opportunity to someone under 30 to kickstart a great career in the trucking and logistics sector and get up to $10,000 in wage incentives.
Training Grants for New Youth Driver Recruits: Hire and provide training to a young driver under 30 and access up to $10,000 in training grants for entry-level driver training.
To learn more about this opportunity and to apply for funding, OTA members can contact Vincent Custode with Trucking HR Canada – vcustode@truckinghr.com