Metal Supermarkets Supports Welding Students

Recognizing the shrinking number of trade laborers entering the workforce, Mark Hoenen has taken initiative by hiring high school students to help out at his Metal Supermarkets franchise in Victoria, British Columbia.

Hoenen has hired Rile Gains, a 15-year old student from Claremont Secondary School who got hooked on to welding from the very first welding class he took. Gains, however, is an exception as most students are not being encouraged enough to go into the trades in most secondary schools.  As a result, trade industries are now facing a huge labor shortage, making it hard for businesses to find and recruit trade specialists.

“It’s tough to get anyone interested in the trades, and very difficult to attract kids to the sector, given the lure of university, the professions and the high-tech world.” – Mark Hoenen, Metal Supermarkets Victoria Franchisee

Read the full Times Colonist article.