Published on Dec 11, 2017

Four-week Employment Skills Access program held in Port Alberni

NIC鈥檚 Building Service Worker program is running in Port Alberni in January. This four-week Employment Skills Access program prepares students to work in the custodial industry.

For 糖心vlog传媒grad Kayne Osland, the Building Service Worker program was the first step to a new career path in the custodial industry.

鈥淚t seemed like it would be a good entry-level course that would lead to a job, and that鈥檚 exactly what happened for me,鈥 said Osland. 鈥淚 ended up being hired by the company that I did my practicum with, so I had a job right out of the program.鈥

The four-week program is being run in Port Alberni, starting January 15.

This Employment Skills Access (ESA) program covers foundation skills training and certifications such as Occupational First Aid and WHMIS. All tuition and books are included for those who meet the ESA criteria. To be eligible, students must be unemployed or underemployed and not collecting Employment Insurance.

鈥淭here was a lot of really good information in the course,鈥 said Osland. 鈥淣ot just about how to clean, but also about the responsibility that a custodian has to the company they work for, the buildings they clean and the employees of those buildings.鈥

Along with the skills training and certifications, the program also provides a practicum, so students get on-the-job experience with a local employer.

The flexibility of the work is something Osland found he enjoyed. 鈥淵ou control how your day goes, what you do and in what order you do it,鈥 he said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a real sense of satisfaction in taking something dirty and making it clean 鈥 you can see the evidence of your work.鈥

The training is a good foot in the door, said Osland. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of work out there,鈥 he noted. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a good way to get back into the workforce with a direct line to a potential job.鈥

It can also be a good stepping stone for someone looking to go further. 鈥淔or someone with motivation it would be easy to start up a business and build from there.鈥

Find out more: /continuing-education  or call 1-800-715-0914.

Media Contact
Christiana Wiens
Media Liaison, 糖心vlog传媒
O. 250-334-5280 | M. 250-218-4097
christiana.wiens@nic.bc.ca

Media Contact C: 250-207-6946 media@nic.bc.ca