A ground-breaking course teaching construction skills to members of London’s Orthodox Jewish community has been launched to help them get jobs on Olympic projects.
The course in Hackney, believed to be the first of its kind in Britain, will give them access to jobs with which they are not traditionally associated.
Hackney Homes, which set up the program in consultation with community leaders, said the first course – which leads to a City and Guilds certificate – was full, and its graduates should be able to work on construction sites when they finish next April.
Rabbi Avraham Pinter, principal of the Yesodey Hatorah schools in Stamford Hill said: “They are gaining skills to give themselves employment opportunities. There is unemployment within this community, just like any other community. Construction is a growing industry in this part of London.”
(Source: Evening Standard UK)
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9 Responses
They should do this in USA as well, for bochurim in yeshiva. They already have yeshiva/college programs, why not yeshiva/trade programs as well?
Olympic projects? Are they going to China?
The Yeshiva in Lancaster PA does something similar. As I understand it, they learn Limudei Kodesh in the morning & electrical or building contracting in the afternoon. BH we are finally starting to teach manual trades Al Taharas Hakodesh, rather than on the job in a – many times – improper environment.
This program should be copied in the United States also.
#2 – F.Y.I. London is hosting the 2012 Olympics, they will be building an Olympic village, which will require many workers and provide much employment.
Yeshiva Darchei Torah in Far Rockaway has had a vocational program for High School bochurim since the yeshiva’s inception. Thank Hashem For Rabbi Yaakov Bender shlita and his foresight!!!
There are yeshivas like this both in PA & in Ottowa
This could never work in Brooklyn/Lakewood, etc. because of the stigma that would be attached to any & all participants… 🙁
I wrote to the editors last week advocating such a program but my letter was never posted.