Sparking youth careers in Saskatchewan’s renewable

SPARKING YOUTH CAREERS IN SASKATCHEWAN’S RENEWABLE ENERGY SECTOR

Internship and training subsidies offer boost to employers while equipping youth with in-demand skills

Saskatchewan’s changing energy landscape is placing huge demands on provincial employers to recruit skilled workers. This, combined with the projected addition of thousands of megawatts of renewable energy for the province in the coming years, means organizations must develop strategies to engage youth and develop their skills in the renewables sector.

One such organization, miEnergy, a full-service renewable energy solutions provider in western Canada, understands this challenge well. They tackled it by working with Electricity Human Resources Canada (EHRC) and leveraging EHRC’s Discovering Potential youth internship and training program. The program offers wage subsidies to support the recruiting and training efforts of employers. Through this training and on-the-job experience, the program introduces the world of electricity to youth while helping organizations increase their capacity for renewables projects.

Excellent outcomes were achieved for both miEnergy and the youth participants. Participants were primarily employed as solar panel and racking installers. They not only learned basic construction skills but also had the opportunity to improve their teamwork, communication, and problem-solving abilities. miEnergy made history working on Saskatchewan’s first utility scale solar PV project located east of Swift Current, Saskatchewan, while at the same time supported the development of the technical and professional skills that will lead the participating youth to workplace success. The PV project now provides 10MW AC of solar energy to Saskatchewan’s energy supply. As Kevin Bergeron, COO of miEnergy, explained, “The Discovering Potential program has allowed us to train and deploy skilled team members to our projects. We are excited to participate in the program and look forward to a long-lasting partnership.”

For employers in Saskatchewan’s electricity and renewables sector, the time is right to act on engaging the next-generation workforce. By leveraging the Discovering Potential wage subsidy of up to $25,000 per participant, employers can lessen the financial risk to themselves while building capacity and planning for the future. Funding can be used to build workplace skills or specific technical knowledge in young people and help them transition to a career in the industry.

For more information on how employers

Participants were primarily employed as solar panel and racking installers. They no t only learned basic construction skills but also had the opportunity to improve their teamwork, communication, and problem-solving abilities.

can get involved, visit EHRC’s website at electricityhr. ca/discovering-potential or send an email to info@ electricityhr.ca.

Discovering Potential is funded by Natural Resources Canada’s Science and Technology Internship Program (STIP). STIP supports Canada’s transition to a lowcarbon economy by connecting youth and natural resources sector employers, and providing wage subsidies, to build a diverse pool of workers qualified to advance positive environmental outcomes.