Pursuing a career as an electrician in Canada can be very rewarding because of the passive income and opportunities for growth. It also comes with job security because professional electricians, among other construction service jobs, are in high demand.
Electricians are in charge of the country’s electrical infrastructure, from residential home wiring to large-scale network and internet cable installation.
To work in this field, you’ll need to follow several steps beginning either at age sixteen or when you’ve finished high school. Here’s how to become an electrician in Canada.
Enroll In A Skills Trade School Training Program
The first step in becoming an electrician is to enroll and complete a training program at an accredited vocational college or trade school. It’s part of the pre-apprenticeship program designed to equip you with the practical skills and theoretical knowledge necessary to be employed in this field and eventually get licensed. Thus, a higher education degree in electrical engineering isn’t required.
Though the requirements and prerequisites differ between provinces, according to the Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act in Canada, you’ll need to have completed a minimum grade 10 education. This will adequately prepare and qualify you to join courses from technical institutions such as Skilled Trades College electrical programs. However, to become part of the electrical industry union, you must have completed grade 12 with math, English, and physics as subjects and have a high school diploma to your benefit.
Female Tutor With Trainee Electricians In Workshop Studying For Apprenticeship At College
Complete Your Electrician Apprenticeship
Since being a construction and maintenance electrician is a regulated trade throughout Canada, you must complete an apprenticeship training program and earn a Certificate of Qualification to work in the industry.
Thus, you can apply for an apprenticeship program in your province which generally take about 9000 hours or four to five years to finish. This is the amount of time the trade allocates the 8,160 hours of on-the-job training and simultaneous 840 hours of in-school learning to gain the necessary experience.
Many apprenticeships divide your school hours into four 8-week semesters depending on whether you enroll in full-time or part-time courses. There are also online and night classes available, and some apprenticeship programs allow pre-apprenticeship training to count as hours completed and deduct the time from your classroom training.
Furthermore, since you will be under the guidance of a certified electrician and part of Canada’s labour force, you will earn an income during your apprenticeship. Your progress will be tracked by a log book and signed off by your electrician supervisor.
Write The Electrician Certification Exam
After successfully completing your electrical apprenticeship and receiving your apprenticeship certificate, you’ll be qualified to sit for the Canadian electrician license exam. Passing these exams is the final step toward becoming a licensed electrician.
The exam is a multiple-choice test made up of situations that test all the necessary skills areas you would encounter while on a real job as designated by your employer. Furthermore, they are designed to test your knowledge of procedures, codes, and practices you learned during the apprenticeship.
It will cover various topics, including installation, maintenance, and service questions. In relation to this, the exam is structured into tasks and then broken down further into sub-tasks to test your competence and understanding of electrical wiring, control, and communication systems and when to apply the procedures of each, for instance.
You must score at least 70 percent within the four-hour time allocation to pass the exam. So, if you get less than this grade, you can apply to retake the exam after a waiting period so you can restudy and review what you got wrong. Depending on your province, it could be several days, but the general term is about two weeks in places like Ontario. However, if you pass, you will be eligible to register for certification and be licensed as a journeyperson.
Conclusion
To become an electrician in Canada, you must be sixteen or have completed grade 12 with math-focused subjects and enroll in a pre-apprenticeship program at a trade school. From there, you’ll be eligible to apply for a five-year electrical apprenticeship, completing the minimum required hours of practical training and in-class learning to get your certificate.
It will give you the skills and knowledge to perform electrical services that you can expect on some real jobs in the future. The final step in reaching your career is passing the official Canadian electrician license exam and getting your certification. Your license then qualifies you to practice and perform electrical work within your province.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
