“It was a learning experience when I look back. I didn’t know any better at the time, but if I was given the opportunity, I wouldn’t go back. There’s no question in my mind,” said Jim Miller, Business Manager at International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC) Local 50 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Jim started his career in the elevator industry in the non-union sector, where he worked for an elevator company for about a year and a half before joining the IUEC. One of the biggest differences he found in working for an IUEC-affiliated elevator company was that he gained access to Canada’s largest, most respected trainer of apprentices across the country, the Canadian Elevator Industry Educational Program (CEIEP).

“The training I received in the non-union sector was very minimal, and it was all on-the-job,” he said. “There was no theoretical training whatsoever.”

Having worked with a number of elevator constructor apprentices and mechanics who made the switch from working at non-union elevator companies to companies affiliated with the IUEC, Mike Lacy, a Business Representative at IUEC Local 50, said the comprehensive benefits package offered by the IUEC is a major advantage to experienced elevator technicians who join the union.

“I think some of the benefits are one of the greatest assets that we’ve experienced when organizing the non-union (apprentices and mechanics),” he said. “They’re actually our best salespeople, and they’re out there spreading the word to say that you know what, these guys are here to work for us, they offer protection, we offer a book of rules, we’re here to represent, we’re here to educate, we’re here to help them move their careers forward.”

Drew Marks, a Business Representative at IUEC Local 50, agreed. “We have lots to provide and lots to offer, whether it comes to education, benefits, wages – the whole package.”

Drew also emphasized the superiority of CEIEP’s training over other elevator training programs in Canada. “We’ve had many (of) non-union individuals that have gone through the community colleges’ (elevator training) programs, and they have unequivocally told us that our education system is far superior (to) what they’ve received there. We’ve got lots to offer here. We’ve got great instructors. We have the ability to put them through the CEIEP Mechanics Exam and the TSSA (Technical Standards and Safety Authority) examination.”

There are different requirements for elevator apprenticeship training in each of Canada’s ten provinces and three territories, so CEIEP has its own national apprenticeship requirements above what all of them require to ensure that apprentices are on track with what is required in the area where they live and work (Ontario, for example, requires 720 classroom hours  – so CEIEP teaches 775 in-class hours to ensure that apprentices qualify). Once apprentices have completed their coursework, supervised work hours, and passed the capstone CEIEP Mechanic Exam, they go on to challenge the licensing exam for their region – and CEIEP is also there to support them as they prepare.

While students are required to take eight weeks off from work to complete their apprenticeship training in other Canadian trades’ apprenticeship programs, CEIEP elevator constructor apprentices work, earn money, and go to school simultaneously. They typically attend classes at night and on occasional weekend days. Because the cost associated with the program is covered by CEIEP students’ IUEC education benefit, there are no out of pocket expenses for them to attend. More information about the CEIEP curriculum can be found by clicking here.

Mike Lacy, who is also a classroom instructor in CEIEP’s apprenticeship program, talked about his experience teaching new elevator constructor apprentices in their first year in the classroom.

“I’ve been lucky enough to teach year one over the past several years, and I really enjoyed dealing with the students coming in new with very limited experience and putting them in front of the screen and putting some of the practical applications they’ve learned on the job site to show them, you know, this is where we came from,” he said.

“Our instructors are really incredible people that are always there to help our apprentices. Whether it be during the classroom or on a Saturday night if one of our apprentices has a question, they’re always glad to pick up the phone and help and that makes a big difference.”

Hands-on training is a big part of the curriculum for CEIEP as well as CEIEP’s U.S. counterpart, the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP), which provides apprenticeship and continuing education courses for IUEC members. In NEIEP as well as CEIEP’s, the hands-on physical and virtual educational labs make a big difference for students who are just starting out. (For a list of FAQs for new CEIEP students, click here.)

“The theoretical portion, that hands-on portion needs to be there,” said Drew Marks. “One of the greatest advances that CEIEP has right now is by bringing in the virtual reality headsets where now every individual gets the opportunity to put the virtual reality (gear) on and interact – not be the person standing off to the side and just watching someone else do it… it gives them also an opportunity to see parts of the industry that they might not see. They could be on a construction site where all they’re doing is installing rails and door frames. Now we’re going to put them into an operational machine room or an operational pit or an operational elevating device hoistway.”

CEIEP recently launched a new 24-hour Virtual Reality Safety course, which is required for all apprentices to complete before they obtain their provincial elevator mechanics’ license. According to CEIEP Program Director Chris McIntyre, this VR training is innovative because “it allows all new hires to the industry to access the machine room, car top, an elevator pit in a safe and controlled manner before their first day of employment,” he said.

The 24-hour Virtual Reality Safety course is the first integration of a technology intended to be used in future educational modules across the national apprenticeship curriculum in Canada. “CEIEP has embraced technology. We are working with some of the companies at the forefront of VR development,” Chris told us when we interviewed him for a profile piece last year.

Safety is a big priority for the IUEC. Ben McIntyre, an International Union of Elevator Constructors International Organizer in Canada, echoed that focus on safety. “I think at the end of the day we need everybody to go home safely, so we want to make sure that they’re properly trained in safety as well. We put a lot of money into the training and safety – as we should.”

In addition to his work as an organizer, Ben is a member of the IUEC Safety Committee, an initiative developed by IUEC General President Frank Christensen that brings together union officials, industry experts, active and retired elevator inspectors, and building inspectors from across the United States and Canada to develop strategies to reduce fatalities and injuries in the elevator industry.

“We’re always trying to do our best to make sure that our members are looked after properly. It’s exciting, it changes every day. Every day we get up, there’s always a new challenge in front of us,” said Mike Lacy.

Looking to hire the best-trained elevator constructor professionals in Canada to install, maintain, service, repair, or inspect the elevators, escalators, moving walks, or other vertical transportation equipment in your building? Check out ElevatorInfo’s contractor map, where you can search for IUEC-affiliated companies by location.