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VAUGHAN, Ont. — Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak took the first step Thursday to reveal how he plans to create one million jobs over eight years, saying he’d start with getting more young people into apprenticeships for the skilled trades.

Allowing more apprentices on work sites so young people can get good-paying jobs as plumbers, welders or electricians and help address a labour shortage in the skilled trades makes good sense, he said.

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“They have this old rule that dates back to the 1970s that says for every single apprentice in many trades you have to have four or five journeymen, so they limit the number of opportunities,” Hudak told construction workers at a new housing project.

“Allow each journeyman to mentor and trade an apprentice, one each, and that’ll help create 200,000 positions.”

The Tories say changing the apprenticeship ratios is an easy fix to a growing labour shortage in the trades and a good way to start addressing the high unemployment rate among youth.