Mohawk College and the Hamilton Port Authority are coming together to help bridge the skills gap in the city's transportation sector.

The two organizations announced Wednesday the launch of a new postgraduate certificate in supply chain management and a $10,000 donation from the port authority to support the skilled trades at Mohawk's CitySchool.

HPA is also providing $20,000 over five years to help local students enrolled in the new program with their tuition.

"There's a gap building between the skilled workforce that we have available today in the marketplace and what's necessary to continue to . drive the industries forward," said Hamilton Port Authority head Ian Hamilton.

"This is echoed wherever we go - whether it be in the shipping side of it looking for sailors, or whether it be in the warehousing side or whether it be in the management of supply chains."

The one-year supply chain management program launches in January through the McKeil School of Business.

It is designed to teach students about how goods flow within an organization - from raw material suppliers to consumers - and prepare them to enter the field of transportation logistics, said Alison Horton, the college's dean of business, continuing education and media and entertainment.

The port authority said it is working with companies located on port lands to create co-op and internship placements for students in the program.

"This partnership is going to make sure that employers who rely on the port have access to the people with the skills they need to be successful," said Mohawk College president Ron McKerlie.

Kevin Hagen understands the gap firsthand.

The senior vice-president and general manager at Fluke Transportation Group said the company has struggled to find drivers over the last number of years as more retire and it becomes more difficult to compete with fields like information technology when attracting new employees.

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"This is a really positive step forward for us in terms of filling the gaps that we need in terms of dispatching, understanding the business - the whole supply chain from beginning to end - and possibly even drivers that we're lacking," he said.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger, who heads up a "blue ribbon task force" on workforce development with McKerlie, also called Wednesday's announcement a step in the right direction.

"It's a really important issue that we find a way of matching the training that's happening at our colleges and universities to the future jobs that are going to be required here in our community," he said.