Millwright apprentice renews her career passion through OPG’s ION program
Tired of being stuck at a desk all day, Amanda Bailey sought out something different for her career.
Bailey spent seven years as a health and safety coordinator at an industrial racking company, wearing many hats in her role. But she eventually grew weary of the long days and nights spent working at the office and at home.
“Over time, it took a toll on me and I got to the point where I needed a change,” she said. “I was not happy or satisfied.”
Then one night, while doing a Google search for jobs, she came across an OPG ad for the company’s Indigenous Opportunities Network (ION) program. ION recruits job-ready individuals and connects them to skilled trades, project management, and administrative jobs within the energy sector.
Having experienced and enjoyed a brief stint welding in an automotive shop years before, Bailey decided to take the plunge and reply to the ad.
“I thought, ‘What have I got to lose?’” said Bailey, who hails from the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory in the Bay of Quinte.
“It’s been an amazing experience working with different trades people. Coming into this experience, I had my own doubts and fears, but that all went away very quickly.”Amanda Bailey, millwright apprentice with CanAtom
She got a reply the next morning and began the process to join ION. Before long, she found herself enrolled in the Introduction to Millwrighting program, a training course created by the Millwright Regional Council of Ontario.
After graduating in the fall of 2021, she immediately began her journey as a millwright apprentice with CanAtom, working on OPG’s Darlington Refurbishment project.
Since then, Bailey has been learning on the job from experienced millwrights and other skilled trades, such as boilermakers, while helping to replace key components in Darlington’s Unit 3 to extend its life by another 30 years. She is now training to help with Unit 1’s upcoming disassembly.
“It’s been an amazing experience working with different trades people,” she said. “Coming into this experience, I had my own doubts and fears, but that all went away very quickly. Everyone here is super helpful, open, and they make sure I’m safe and making the right choices.”
Highly trained millwrights install, maintain, diagnose and repair various industrial and mechanical equipment – from pumps and conveyors to the steam turbines that produce electricity at OPG’s nuclear stations.
For Bailey, making her jump to the trades was daunting at first, especially as it meant leaving a secure job and an already established career. The hardest thing to get over, she said, was her own insecurities and doubts.
“I was asking myself, ‘Am I able to do this? Will I be accepted?’” she said. “Your mind plays tricks on you, making you think this is the wrong move. But it was absolutely the right move for me.”
Her message to others mulling a change is the same message she told herself just a few short months ago.
“Just go for it. Don’t listen to that little voice in your head. You have to go after it.”
About ION
Since launching in September 2018, OPG’s ION program has helped place more than 80 Indigenous workers in various roles at OPG and across the energy sector. OPG continues to work with Kagita Mikam Aboriginal Employment and Training, based in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, to help identify and assess recruits for ION.
ION is helping to support the goals outlined in OPG’s Reconciliation Action Plan, which commits to increasing the representation of Indigenous employees across the company and growing the economic impact for Indigenous communities and businesses to $1 billion over the next 10 years.
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