SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - A 27-year-old Tli Cho First Nation's man is one of 11 new graduates of a driller helper training program sponsored by the Mining Training Society of the NWT, and he is the first one to receive certification.

One of the graduates of a new driller training program, Darren Rabesca, has just received certification from Ontario. - photo courtesy of Bill Braden

"We're really thrilled Darren (Rabesca) got his certification. It could (lead) to higher wages, but it's also an official recognition that gives you labour mobility," said Hilary Jones, general manager of the society. "He now has a world-wide recognized credential."

Rabesca agreed. "I like having a (certificate) knowing I can work anywhere," he said.

Rabesca, of Whati, received his Ontario Common Core Certification as a driller assistant after completing the society's driller helper program in 2009.

The Mine Training Society contributed $376,000 toward the training program through the federal government's Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership program. He was able to receive the Ontario certification because his current employer, Foraco Canada Ltd., has its head office in North Bay, Ontario.

The 2009 training program lasted 12 weeks, three weeks of classroom training at Aurora College in Yellowknife and the Deton Cho Training Centre in Dettah, and the other nine weeks involved practical training at various locations.

The participants were all male between the ages of 25 and 35.

Jones said the motivation to offer the program is to give companies to train and hire local residents to work in the exploration field rather than importing workers, said Jones.

"Exploration is usually happening near one of our communities or on their traditional lands, so we're trying to create diamond drillers at home," she said. "Exploration is so necessary to keep the economy in the North going."

Rabesca has been working with the drilling company Foraco for about three months as drilling helper. He is currently posted in a joint project with Avalon Rare Mineral's Nechalacho project at Thor Lake, located about 100 km southeast of Yellowknife.

He works long hours and six weeks at a time with two weeks off. Foraco and Avalon along with Great Slave Helicopters were some of the companies that offered assistance to the driller helper training program. Foraco provided a drill for training and two instructors.

One of the instructors, Rick Guile, is also the field supervisor with Foraco.

He described Rabesca as quiet and good listener. Guile explained that a driller's helper maintains various equipment such as pumps around the drill site and assists the driller in all procedures during operation. Usually after two years, drillers assistants may be promoted to a driller, he said.

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