“What do I like about the job? When it’s a beautiful day and you’re out there, and everything’s going right. You’re working hard and your muscles are working hard, and you get down from the scaffold at the end of the day and you look at your wall and you go, ‘That looks really good.’ And knowing you can drive by it 20 years from now and go ‘I built that.’ In nice weather, it’s heaven."

Adrienne Barrett - OMTC Apprentice, 2002-2006, Certified (Red Seal) Brick & Stone Mason, March 2006

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As a registered Training Delivery Agent of the Province of Ontario’s Ministry of Training Colleges and Universities (MTCU), the Ontario Masonry Training Centre (OMTC) offers leading edge in-school apprenticeship training for the masonry industry. Our apprentices are trained to exceed masonry employers’ human resources needs in the Industrial, Commercial and Institutional sectors in addition to residential applications.

As one of the most established forms of education in the world, apprenticeship is a sound method of teaching craftsmanship and skills training. In the Province of Ontario, a registered Brick and Stone Mason apprenticeship requires 5600 hours of training, 80% on-the-job and 20% in-school. In-school training is divided into three 8-week sessions - Basic, Intermediate and Advanced. Optimally, apprentices attend one in-school session per year and are trained on the job for the remaining 10 months of the year.

Apprentices must be registered to a “Contract of Apprenticeship” by their employer to attend the OMTC. Thanks to funding from the MTCU, Ontario Masonry Contractors’ Association, Canadian Concrete Masonry Producers Association, Cement Association of Canada, Hanson Brick Ltd. and Brampton Brick Ltd. apprentices pay only the minimum government mandated fee of $400 per in-school level to attend the OMTC, regardless of union affiliation.

Employers who register their apprentices are also eligible to take advantage of the Government of Ontario’s Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit. Implemented in 2004, this credit reimburses employers for 25 to 30 per cent of eligible expenditures up to a maximum tax credit of $5,000 per qualifying apprentice per taxation year.

Special thanks to our financial partners and the many masonry industry supporters who donate materials and equipment for training purposes and community development projects. Your generosity helps OMTC to Build a Solid Future! for the masonry industry and Ontario communities.

	OMTC Apprentices participate in many valuable non-profit community projects during their training. Honourable Mentions: Discovery Centre Rose Cherry's Home for Kids Camp Maple Leaf Habitat for Humanity
The Discovery Centre as it stood before the OMTC apprentices along with Robin Gilholm began and restoration work.

WOW! Check out profiles & video of a couple of OMTC's outstanding apprentices on TVO's CareerMatters website.