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Laying a foundation for the future

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This article was published 28/04/2025 (247 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Greg Wood has been fascinated with stone masonry and the built environment for as long as he can remember. That’s why its fitting Wood is among the first cohort of students to take part in the Pre-Apprentice Bricklayer Program being offered by non-profit organization First Peoples Development Inc. (FPDI).

The program was designed in conjunction with Bricklayers Union Local 1 to give Indigenous people training in employment readiness, safety, and construction skills to facilitate a direct pathway
to apprenticeship and employment in the construction industry.

Wood is originally from the First Nations community of South Indian Lake and spent much of his adult life working as a heavy equipment operator in northern Manitoba. Two years ago the single father moved to Winnipeg to further his education and seek a new career while providing his two sons a similar opportunity to “learn and grow.”

Shortly after arriving in the city he learned about FPDI’s Bricklayer Program from a family friend. He applied a short time later and began his studies in January. It was a match made in heaven.

“To tell you the honest truth, I’ve been fascinated with stonework ever since I was a kid,” he says.

“And I was always fascinated with old buildings when I was a kid. I always wanted to know how old this or that building was. I always had an eye for that type of work but never realized I was going to be trying to get into it until I (did).” The FPDI Bricklayer Program runs for 23 weeks. Students receive two weeks of workforce readiness instruction followed by a week of safety training including lessons on First Aid, flagging and fall protection. That is followed by 20 weeks of pre-apprenticeship classroom and practical training.

Wood and his classmates will receive their Level 1 apprentice bricklayer accreditation in June once they have completed 800 hours of training. They will then take part in a three-month work placement.

One of the things Wood enjoys most about the program is its focus on hands-on learning. “If it was just auditory or visual learning … you would not know how to flow with a brick or with your trowel or to feel the mortar or know how your body moves. With the program, you feel first-hand how to adjust and what you need to do for yourself,” he says.

Wood plans to continue on his current path and eventually obtain his Red Seal certification as a Level 3 bricklayer.

Bricklayers are in high demand in the Canadian construction industry and can specialize in a number of different areas including stone work, restoration, ornamental work and the installation of refractories and corrosion-resistant materials. Wood says part of what drew him to bricklaying is that it’s a unionized trade that offers health benefits and greater job security than his previous occupation did.

It also offers an opportunity to have an impact on the community around him. “Just having your work somewhere and knowing its your work, that’s tangible. That’s yoursignature and you’re putting an imprint on the city. That is significant to me in the long-run and more satisfying to the soul. The paycheque is good too because it will help sustain me and let me do more creating.”

The next Bricklayer program begins in fall 2025. For details about the program and its prerequisites, please visit www.fpdinc.ca.