18 grads look for jobs
Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services
Kugluktuk (Mar 12/01) - Matilda Algona is waiting for a phone call that could help her move up the ladder of success.
The young Kugluktuk woman is hoping to hear about a job at Diavik Diamond Mines Inc.
"As soon as they have a job available, they're going to call us and interview us and then offer us all jobs," said Algona.
She's one of 18 residents in the Kitikmeot community who graduated from the six-week construction trades helper and camp cook helper training program last month.
"I learned how to make all kinds of stuff from scratch," said Algona. "There are so many other little things I know how to do now," she said.
Algona is proud of her accomplishment and of the community feast to celebrate the event.
Sandy Buchan, hamlet's manager of community development, said many in the community shared in Algona's pride in a job well done.
"The celebration was very touching for a lot of people," said Buchan. "I think the students appreciated the recognition. You could tell they were taking a lot of pride in what they had accomplished," he said.
"It really hit home, especially to the Diavik guys, that they'd made such an impact."
Buchan said one of the highlights of the evening were job offers from the mine's staff.
"Several of them got job offers at Diavik," said Buchan.
While the immediate success of the participants is indeed notable, the program also illustrated the need for a trade school in the area.
Buchan said in keeping with an employment plan being worked on by the hamlet, which will catalogue all the available jobs, then train and place residents in those jobs, a trade school is the best way to get people trained.
"One strategy we'll use to match people to jobs is a trade school," said Buchan.
"We know people have had limited success going out of town for training. If we have the numbers and research done, we can make a compelling argument for a trade school," he said.
The $224,000 program was paid for by Diavik Diamond Mines, Department of Education, the hamlet, the housing association and Nunavut Arctic College.
