JANE SPONAGLE
BIZ/TECH REPORTER

In an economy where Canadians struggle to find full-time employment, companies are actively recruiting Humber’s 60 HVAC final year students.
“We’ve actually got a couple of large companies coming in to have a chat,” said HVAC instructor Alan Gaunt. “They want to talk to our graduates before they’re finished, before they’re spoken for.”
He said one company is Engineered Air, based in Newmarket.
“They’ve hired a number of our graduates in the past and have been very happy with them,” said Gaunt.
David Kukkonen, general manager of Engineered Air’s Newmarket division, said there is a good fit between the Humber HVAC graduates and his company because graduates have the required skills and can think on their feet.
Gaunt also heard from the Canadian Oil Heat Association.

Alan Gaunt displays some equipment used in the HVAC program. Employers are pursuing 60 graduating students. (Jane Sponagle)

“They were very interested.  Their words exactly were, ‘We’ve got openings out West for your oil techs, if they’re interested.”
“We’re seeing a lot of people headed to Saskatchewan.  There seems to be a need there right now,” said Gaunt.
Not all students are interested in heading west.
Second-year HVAC student Trung Ngo, 21, is graduating this spring and plans to stay in the GTA.
“I have a brother-in-law who’s in trade who said it’s good to get into any trade,” said Ngo.
Ngo said he chose HVAC because it’s the second highest paying trade.
Gaunt said he was hesitant to give a figure as to how much graduates can expect to earn after graduation because they may be paid hourly or for piecework.
“Most of our graduates would be looking to start at $14 to $15 an hour but very quickly progress quite often into the $30 an hour range,” said Gaunt.
Last spring, 56 students graduated from the two-year HVAC program.