Vocational training board turns away trainees as demand outstrips capacity

The Barbados Vocational Training Board is facing a major capacity challenge as demand for skills training remains strong, with 1 500 people applying for its Construction Gateway programme.

As the Barbados Vocational Training Board (BVTB) welcomed more than 350 prospective trainees to its orientation rally on Thursday, Director of Training Gerard Prescod said nearly all classes for the new semester are already at capacity.

BTVB trainees during Thursday’s ceremony. (Photo Credit: Lourianne Graham / Barbados TODAY)

Speaking to reporters at the C. Lomer Alleyne Skills Training Centre at Sayes Court, Christ Church, he pointed to a challenge in attracting younger people to some areas of the construction industry.

“This semester, nearly all of our classes are full to capacity. The challenge is we are also doing something called Construction Gateway, which we are tasked to train people for the construction industry. In that area, we are finding more mature people, older people who are coming to do it and not enough younger people who want to get into the trade.”

He said younger people are showing greater interest in other technical areas, including air-conditioning, refrigeration and mechanics.

Prescod added: “We don’t do electric vehicles here yet, so they’re more going off to [Samuel Jackman Prescod Institute] for that, and once we can change it to probably get electric vehicles, we’ll probably get some more. We’re reintroducing this year, automotive and autobody repair, and the response to that has been tremendous. I think 20 people who are interested in it, we can only hold about 16.”

Assistant Director of Training Operations Sophia Moore said BVTB has been operating at maximum capacity, with some programmes running multiple classes.

“Some classes we have more than one like masonry, plumbing, tiling, so then we train 32 for the year instead of 16, but we are limited based on the facilities, the capacity, how much a classroom can accommodate, the number of trainers that we have and the sites that we have, but for Gateway we’ve been using off-site satellite locations, so we’ve been able to do more.”

Moore added: “In terms of the demand, it’s about the same. There are one or two classes that the demand may change or vary a little over the years, depending on what’s happening industry-wide, but basically we’re always operating at maximum.”

Prescod said BVTB’s capacity is restricted by a 16-person limit stipulated in legislation, resulting in many applicants being turned away each year.

“The act would have stipulated that we could only train 16, so they may have to go back and change the act, but from the time I came to BVTB, that was what it was regulated and stipulated. So what we do is try to reach out to schools, use their facilities so we can increase our classes.”

Prescod said BVTB is adapting its automotive training to changes in the industry, with some demonstrators already receiving electric-vehicle training.

“We’ve sent some of our demonstrators to train in EV; once we are fully satisfied, then we will probably seek to get an electric vehicle that they can actually train on and try to get diesel engines. Now this is another challenge here; we work mainly on gasoline engines. We have one or two, probably 1 diesel engine, but I’m trying to seek corporate Barbados assistance in getting some diesel engines so that I can expose my trainees to also working on diesel engines.”

The BVTB also plans to bring back small-engine repair as it considers new trades to respond to changing needs.

Registrar Dr Cheryl Gibson revealed autobody repairs, painting and finishing are among the new programmes added by the board.

“We’ve now added autobody repairs, and I know even though not skills training, we now have a mini excavator program as well. We’re looking into the whole simulators to help augment the teaching and learning experience of our training.”

Clerk-typist Shelly-Ann Alexander said the programmes are attracting significant interest: “We hold 16 students to a classroom, and because of the numbers that are applying, there are some unfortunately that we had to turn back. We had skid-steer, which is one and that is only 16 persons but we had to turn back students, we didn’t have the space for cosmetology as well, international cuisine.”

(LG)