Career Options
Bob West: How a paintbrush created his futureFrancis Ford Coppola once said that if you love something, you'll bring so much of yourself to it that it will create your future. ROSS FATTORI |
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 [ 2002-08-21 ] |
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For Bob West, 55, his passion for painting has created a stellar career in the housing industry in Ontario.
Like many business owners, West didn't envision becoming a business owner until his late 20s.
Prior to starting his own painting business, Mr. West worked in life insurance and real estate, and he was a homebuilder. "I started painting because I couldn't find and keep enough good people," says West, who was born and raised in Barrie. "I slid into the role by chance and it soon became my passion."
For the past 25 years, West has been an influential business and community leader. He has earned tremendous respect and recognition for his quality of work and his commitment to excellence.
The more he painted, the more he enjoyed it. By applying a few basic principles (quality workmanship, showing up on time), West's painting business flourished throughout the Barrie area. Over the years, referrals and repeat customers fuelled much of the company's growth.
Operating a successful painting business has given West a sense of freedom and pride. At one point, his company was grossing more than $300,000 with 10 painters on staff. "Painting has allowed me to enjoy a comfortable life," says West, who is semi-retired today.
His painting business gave West something else, too -- a sense of civic responsibility and a keen desire to give something back to his industry. He has been actively involved as a volunteer in the United Way, The Barrie Citivan Club and Citizens on Patrol. He is a past president of the Greater Barrie Home Builders Association, and he has recently completed a three-year term on the Provincial Advisory Committee for the Painter & Decorator apprenticeship program.
Today, West sits on the board of directors of the OHBA, and he is the current chairperson of the Ontario Home Builders Association's (OHBA) training and education committee. "We're on a mission these days to address the shortage of skilled workers," he says. "We want to encourage more young people to consider skilled trades as a profession. It's an uphill battle, but we're making progress."
West says that, after high school, roughly 30% of students go on to college or university. The remaining 70% enter the workforce after Grade 12.
"A lot of young people are pushed towards careers in computers, or to become doctors and lawyers," he says. "But there aren't that many good paying jobs in the computer field, and not everyone is going to be happy as a doctor or lawyer."
In learning to become a bricklayer, drywaller or carpenter, young people have the potential to earn good money right away. Once they have worked in the profession for a few years, they can start their own business. Today, the average age of an apprentice in the construction industry is 27. West would like to see that age lowered.
According to West, the process of change begins at home and at the high school level. Guidance counsellors must do a better job communicating to students the opportunities and benefits of learning a skilled trade. On the home front, parents shouldn't be ashamed to encourage their children to learn a skilled trade.
"There is a great deal of job fulfillment, flexibility and freedom involved in learning a skilled trade," West says. "The work is interesting. The housing market in Ontario is expected to remain healthy for years, and the opportunities for young people in this thriving profession are limitless."
These days, West is working to bring building organizations together to address the skills shortage.
"We're trying to get builders to take ownership of this problem," he says. "We have to create co-op programs for students and other initiatives."
West is encouraged by the efforts Mattamy Homes, which established a co-op education program with five school boards throughout the province.
The company has its own Centre for Skilled Development to train people for the construction industry. Caraco Development Corporation of Kingston has developed a partnership with the local Frontenac School Board and with St. Lawrence College and Queen's University.
While initiatives such as these are encouraging, West believes more needs to be done to attract skilled workers to the housing industry.
"We would like to see more women entering the construction trades," he says. "Based on my experience, women are very capable, conscientious and punctual. There are many opportunities for women to learn a skilled trade."
West adds that the Greater Barrie Home Builders Association sponsors two bursary programs each year. The recipients of this year's bursaries (one for carpentry, the other for cabinet making) were both women.
Bob West may have curtailed his business-related activities, but he hasn't slowed down his responsibilities within the OHBA.
"I only hope that my efforts will inspire a new generation of skilled tradespeople in the industry," he says. "The issue will become more pressing as more people reach retirement age."
(Ross Fattori is a Toronto-based freelance writer who can be reached at rosswords@rogers.com.)
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