KITIKMEOT
A partnership designed to increase employment in the mining industry among residents of the Kitikmeot region has seen its first group participants complete training and on-site work experience.

Lucien Sigguk learning hands on, back, proper core boxing and placement from Geotech drill assistant Gerry Mathews. - photo courtesy of Geotech Drilling Services

The first nine students have just finished the drilling assistant's program organized between the association's Kitikmeot Corporation and Vancouver-based Geotech Drilling Services. The partnership was named Geotech Ekutak, after the Inuktitut word for drill.

"It's a small start, but it's a great start for us," said Michell Buchan, manager of Inuit employment and training at the Kitikmeot Inuit Association. "From what I've heard so far (the staff at Hope Bay) were extremely pleased with them and definitely looking at hiring them all on when they're finished their second rotation if they do just as well."

Buchan and Geotech Drilling's health, safety and training advisor, Mark MacNeil, said it took almost a year of curriculum planning, logistics, sorting through applications and confirmation of funding before the students even arrived at the site of TMAC's Hope Bay gold project. MacNeil, who also served as a trainer, estimated program development took four to five months.

Originally, the plan was for 12 students to attend the initial week of training. But Buchan said the limited availability of beds at TMAC's facility meant only nine students could go.

"They spent a few days here in Cambridge Bay doing first aid (training) and then they went out to site and doing classroom and hands-on base stuff," she said. "Out of that group, (Geotech Ekutak) made a selection of five people that were going to be accepted into the paid rotations."

Buchan said one of those five people selected dropped out. But the four that did stay were on site for a total of four weeks, one for orientation and then a three-week paid rotation as driller's assistants.

"The idea is they can train as surface driller assistants as well as underground," she said. "And that will be based on what is available and what is going on at the time."

Buchan said feedback from other employees of Geotech Ekutak was positive.

Prospective students were required to be 18 years of age or older, be unemployed or underemployed, have passed the Mine Training Society's Intro to Mining Training program and in some cases, have letters of reference or experience working in a remote area.

Geotech sustainability manager Tim Mohring said students also had to be able to handle physically demanding work while dealing with the mental challenges of being away from home for long periods of time.

"Their first rotation was four weeks, many can be three to six weeks, depending on the company," he said. "If you're spending $3,000 to $4,000 on flights, you don't want want people in and out in just a week."

Buchan said students came from every part of the Kitikmeot region. However, she said the diversity of geographic locations ended up requiring a charter plane in order to get everyone to Cambridge Bay on time for training.

The pilot project's budget of more than $300,000 came from the KIA, Geotech, the Government of Nunavut, TMAC Resources, Skills Canada and the Nunavut Mine Training Roundtable.

Ultimately, Buchan said Geotech Ekutuk's training was designed to have transferable skills the students could use to continue building capacity in other areas of the industry. Buchan said students who weren't kept on after the first week of training still received a reference letter.

"We're hoping the economy will pick up and these people will find work," she said.

Mohring said that he personally knows the difference a training program like this can make for someone, as it led to his own 18-year experience in the industry.

"If we can get one of these guys to get a career, it'll be totally worth it," Mohring said.

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