Shirley Bond, BC's Minister of Advanced Education, is the Prince George MLA who worked on the school board with Doug Walls and recommended him to former Minister Gordon Hogg. With that credibility problem, she is asking the public to trust her in an investigation of an exam scandal that tried to cover-up the consequences of her government's cuts to apprenticeship.

On March 26, 2003, the Campbell government closed the Industry Training and Apprenticeship Office (ITAC). Most of the apprenticeship trainers and counselors were laid off. The new system focused on self-help. According to the government website, changes included "... apprentices taking responsibility for tuition fees and scheduling their own technical courses through training institutions." A 1-800 number replaced staff and apprentices were told not to look to the new Industry Training Centre for help finding in-school technical training; 16,300 apprentices were told to fend for themselves.

When government eliminated ITAC it said "A new model for industry training is being developed to meet the needs of apprentices, employers and communities, and to provide British Columbia with a skilled, mobile work force that can address the looming skills shortages in the province. The new model for industry training is intended to produce a world-class system." Notice the words "is being developed". Like many of the ready-fire-aim failures of the Campbell government, ITAC was destroyed without a well thought out plan of what would replace it. Instead of delivering a "world-class system", BC apprentices are tarred with the scandal of phony exam results.

A highly controversial component of the new apprenticeship model is the introduction of "modular training, which offers trainees the choice of becoming certified in different components of a trade or trades, and building on existing skills." That's like teaching a carpenter how to hammer a nail but not how to use a screwdriver. The consequence of modular training is that BC apprentices might fail to qualify for the coveted Red Seal which provides certification that a worker has the skills necessary to qualify in any province. The exam scandal involves increasing marks so apprentices passed Red Seal requirements.

B.C. Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair has called for a public inquiry into the "Red Seal" accreditation scandal. The Federation's news release alerts the public to serious consequences that may flow from the exam scandal. "The new Safety Standards Act regulations throws the door wide open for non-skilled and semi-skilled workers to do the work of compulsory trades. The new system will not allow for verification of qualifications of workers on the job by municipal and provincial inspectors," said Sinclair. The Federations news release went on to say "When the new regulations come into effect April 1, 2004, the responsibility for ensuring that properly qualified trades people are working on job sites will be solely in the hands of the employer and no longer in the hands of our government."

From time to time we hear news stories about buildings collapsing in some far distant part of the third world where contractors cheat on construction standards. Don't think that it cannot happen here! That is why an investigation led by a Minister, who defended her bankrupt friend, is not good enough; that is why Jim Sinclair is right to call for a public inquiry.