Donna Lindsay, Heavy-Duty Mechanic
(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)
"When I first started the apprenticeship, I was scared. I was so afraid because I didn't know anything about it. My first day on the job, on surface, they put me with an older fellow. He opened up the hood of the Jeep and I looked in there and thought to myself, ‘Oh my God...' And I said, ‘I don't know why I'm here. I don't have a clue about any of this.'
"And he looked at me and he said, ‘Well of course you don't, that's why you're an apprentice. You're here to learn. Once you have your ticket* that's a ticket to learn."
*Note: Getting your "ticket" means obtaining your qualification to work as a journeyperson. This trade is also Red Seal, meaning the ticket is good in other provinces. For more information about apprenticeship programs, see Interprovincial Standards Red Seal Program in USEFUL LINKS.