Public Utilities Minister Colm Imbert is promising a $50 increase per day for trainees involved in the Plumbing Skills Training Programme (PIPE).
Speaking at an ‘Engagement Session’ with the trainees on Monday, he said this initiative is a critical one for the country in boosting the shortfall of “licensed sanitary constructors.”
“Because we have tried to harmonise stipends, and I do think your stipend needs to be increased somewhat.”
His statement was met with applause from 89 apprentices of the programme who currently receive $100 per day for the days they attend training.
Minister Imbert suggested that a higher stipend might have prevented the dropout of 11 apprentices from the first cohort of 100.
“We could do an interim solution in the meantime and get covering approval from Cabinet. Now the stipend is very important because these training programmes suffer because the trainees need to have some kind of sustenance while they’re being trained. Remember they’re not working. So if the stipend is too low, they’re not motivated to remain in the programme. That’s why I want to up it a little bit and bring it up to the level of the other programmes. Right now it’s $100; I want to get it up to $150 a day.”
He added that there is a lack of licensed plumbers in the country, pointing to the critical need for such a programme.
“There is a shortage. We probably need about four or five hundred of these professionals at this point in time, and we barely have 200. So there is in the country a shortage. If you are doing any kind of development, land development, a building or anything like that, not a regular home. If you’re doing any kind of commercial or industrial development, you need to have a licenced plumber involved to submit the application and to submit the plans and so on.”
Mr. Imbert said when these trainees eventually receive their licences, they will be in “great demand” and will be “highly trained and sought-after individuals.”
“When they finish this, they get something called a Caribbean Vocational Qualification – that’s a training qualification. Once you have that, you can actually work anywhere in the Caribbean, but you have to work with a licensed plumber. You can’t start the programme to become a licensed plumber unless you have some kind of certificate or diploma. This gives them that certificate, so they can now do a three-year apprenticeship programme with a licensed plumber.”
The training programme provides apprentices with practical experience and specialised technical skills in the area of plumbing.