Anyone who’s ever worked on a construction site knows this: teamwork isn’t optional, it’s the foundation. Trades, contractors, and project managers all have to pull together to make it happen.

That same spirit of collaboration is driving a bold initiative by the Manitoba Construction Sector Council (MCSC), powered by funding from the Northpine Foundation. The mission is to help 180 Employment Income Assistance (EIA) recipients break into the construction industry and stay there. The target is to have a minimum of 70% of participants in full-time jobs for at least a year.

Big goals need strong allies, and MCSC is stacking its deck with partnerships that matter. For the training phase, they’ve lined up organizations offering space, expertise, and hands-on opportunities, including for a framing course this spring.

One of those partnerships is with North Forge–a business startup incubator that houses one of the largest publicly accessible fabrication labs in North America. That fabrication lab, and the millions of dollars worth of tools it houses, are valuable resources for MCSC, who will send participants of the framing course to the facility for hands-on practice in February.

“We really pride ourselves on reducing barriers for people looking to enter the trades or entrepreneurship as much as we can,” remarked Devon Shewchuk, Manager of Marketing and Partnerships at North Forge. “What we’re hoping to do is give participants in this program skills and knowledge to launch their career in the trades through in-class and technical learning.”

This won’t be the first time that MCSC and North Forge are joining forces. They’ve previously partnered for a women and gender-diverse workshop alongside Bockstael Construction, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, and Film Training Manitoba to break down barriers with carpentry training, community building, and scholarships.

“There are so many fantastic initiatives that can come to light out of collaborations like this,” Shewchuk added. “The best part about this is that we’re reaching different networks. We all want to better the Manitoba economy and our society, and with these partnerships, we can each expand our reach to new audiences.”

Another key partner for the framing course is Habitat for Humanity Manitoba–a not-for-profit improving access to quality affordable homes for low-income families. Much of that work is done through constructing homes, and Habitat expands their impact by turning their job sites into volunteer opportunities and learning experiences.

This isn’t the first time MCSC has teamed up with Habitat for Humanity Manitoba either. Last year, MCSC had participants of another framing course for this Northpine Foundation program join Habitat’s construction sites one day a week for six weeks. This year, they’re stepping it up to two days a week for 12 weeks when the participants join them February.

“We line up our work so that these students can have a relevant work experience with framing,” stated Habitat for Humanity Manitoba CEO, Jamie Hall. “But they’re on a construction site, so they’ll be involved in the work that needs to be done, too.”

Forming these kinds of partnerships helps Habitat bring their impact beyond the houses themselves.

“We love to be a part of helping people learn new skills, especially where we can help them move out of unemployment into steady employment, as with this program,” noted Hall.

And at the heart of it all, of course, is MCSC’s vision for better futures for Manitobans.

“This project is about more than training, it’s about transforming lives,” said Carol Paul, Executive Director of MCSC. “When we give people the tools and the confidence to succeed, we’re not just building careers. We’re building stronger communities.”

When you put the right people, resources, and vision together, you offer hope and a blueprint for lasting change. Because in construction and in careers, the strongest foundations are the ones we lay together.