Has EI/HRSDC stopped funding aviation training?
In the past there have been threads on aviation forums regarding EI/HRSDC funding aviation training for unemployed pilots. Some pilots have had general ratings such as the Multi-engine and Instrument Rating paid for and others have received full funding for Type Ratings for such aircraft as the DHC8, all through EI/HRSDC while unemployed.
In the current recession EI/HRSDC should be doing all it can to help the increased numbers of unemployed get back to work. This is what the Skills Development part of HRSDC is supposed to be for. Presumably it should also apply to pilots. There have been advertisements advising that funding is available to the unemployed for various courses such as a Class 1 driver’s licence to become a truck driver. EI/HRSDC also funds academic courses and trades at various colleges. It seems that funding is only available now to those who want to change careers. Where is the funding for those who want to stay in the same occupation but want to upgrade their qualifications and develop their skills to make themselves more employable? Has the Skills Development part of HRSDC been stopped?
Staff at EI/HRSDC offices or provincial offices acting on behalf of Service Canada claim to know nothing about funding for pilot training or skills development. Indeed according to several unemployed pilots they know nothing about any of the requirements/training/expense needed to act as a pilot or of such things as Type Ratings, recurrent training and medicals, etc. They apparently think a 250 hour CPL entitles one to jump into the left seat of a B747 and that nothing more is need for the rest of one’s career! Pilots pay the same amounts into the EI fund, they pay the same income and other taxes, so why are they denied the same training and skills development when they become unemployed?
Has any pilot had any recent experience (this year) of receiving EI/HRSDC funding, either directly through Service Canada or indirectly through a provincial agency, for pilot training and skills development?