Driving Back to Work Grant putting 500 Albertans behind the wheel

The Alberta government has received feedback from farmers, foresters, roughnecks, and truckers that there is a major barrier to hiring Albertans for trucking jobs.

That barrier is money. 

The Alberta government’s response  is that they are now offering the Driving Back to Work Grant which they say will help get Albertans back to work by assisting them with the costs of commercial truck driver training.

“The Drive Back to Work Grant is a spectacular program that will allow more Albertans to access more trucking jobs,” MLA Laila Goodridge for Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche said. “This is so critically important to keep so many different sectors of our economy running.”

According to a Alberta government news release, “The grant provides $5,000,000 to cover up to 90 per cent of the costs of Class 1 Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) for up to 500 Albertans.”

MELT is a required training program for new Class 1 (tractor-trailer) & Class 2 (bus) drivers taught at driver training schools and organizations across Alberta.

The original grant program announced in November 2020 supported over 300 Albertans with their training and was an overwhelming success. These changes do not affect the high training and safety standards required by MELT in order to keep Alberta’s roads safe.

“Alberta’s Recovery Plan is ensuring Albertans have the skills they require to get back to work, which is exactly what these programs will support,” the government stated.

Unemployed Albertans can apply for the grant here.

arthur@lakelandconnect.thedev.ca