We are deeply proud of the many programs and offerings BCCWITT has been able to offer members of our network over the years, as they each had lasting impacts for people, communities and workplaces.
However, due to the nature of the funding cycles and grants that our non-profit organization works under, there are legacy programs we don’t currently have funding to deliver. The below legacy programs are not currently offered by BCCWITT, but we continue to honour the positive impact they’ve had.
Be More Than A Bystander
Be More Than A Bystander (BMTAB) is a powerful training and education program that makes communities and workplaces safer, by delivering practical tools to end violence, bullying and harassment.
BMTAB was developed in 2011 as a partnership between Ending Violence Association of BC (EVA BC) and the BC Lions Football to provide high school students with the skills to break the silence on gender-based violence. BCCWITT proudly joined the partnership in 2018 to customize the program for the skilled trades industry…addressing gender-based barriers that are specific to skilled trades worksites.
BMTAB trains individuals to step forward as leaders in driving the cultural changes required to make workplaces more welcoming, healthy, safe and respectful for everyone.
Delivered in a train-the-trainer style, BCCWITT has trained over 400 Bystander spokespeople and industry allies, as one way we help make workplaces safer for tradeswomen and gender diverse trades workers to build lasting careers.
BCCWITT’s work on this program was funded by SkilledTradesBC. Funding expired March 31, 2024.
Leaders in Trades
The Leaders in Trades (LIT) program (formerly the Regional Representative Program Leadership Training) was an initiative designed to increase the number of tradespeople from equity priority groups (Indigenous, racialized people, 2SLGBTIAQ+, immigrants, people with disabilities, women) in leadership positions, both as volunteers and staff within the skilled trades sector in British Columbia. Participants actively represented themselves, their trades, their regions, their identities, and their communities.
This highly successful community-based program provided fun, safe and challenging experiences for applicants to:
- Build leadership skills.
- Learn about barriers and resources for underrepresented groups in trades.
- Develop a peer mentorship network.
- Make a difference in the future of trades in BC.
We continue to be deeply proud of the community of leaders that were developed, supported and connected through this grassroots program, with many of the past participants continuing to play vital roles in the BCCWITT network and our wider community today.
This program was funded by SkilledTradesBC. Funding expired in 2024.
BCCWITT Advancement Bursary and Project Grant Programs
The BCCWITT Advancement Bursary delivered 294 bursaries to underrepresented workers of all genders, between 2023 and 2025. This funding offered workers much sought after support and flexibility to invest in additional training or purchase things like PPE, clothing and tools that fit their bodies and needs the best. By helping make sure these workers show up properly prepared and comfortably equipped, we support the development and growth of a more diverse, stable and stronger trades workforce in BC.
The Project Grant program offered past Leaders in Trades (LIT) participants the opportunity to apply for up to $5000 grants, based on project proposals from the candidates. These projects promoted skilled trades careers for youth and equity priority people. The funding was targeted to support initiatives based on applicants’ lived experience to create, operate or host/co-host programs and events that reached out to youth and equity priority people.
Project Grant highlights include: Youth in Trades camps and sampler programs (helping youth explore options in the trades), Building Tiny Homes (built for refugees, using the building experience as an opportunity to recruit community members into skilled trades careers), hosting meetups (where tradeswomen created community and vital connections across sites and trades, helping support retention), development of a HUB for tradeswomen (a physical space where tradeswomen and students can connect and build community on the BCIT Burnaby campus) and funding for a pride event at BCIT, and building out and caring for a community garden in Ntamtquen—where local participants were exposed to carpentry skills and encouraged to consider it as a possible career.
The BCCWITT Advancement Bursary and Project Grant programs were both funded by a one-time investment from the BC Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills.