Line Crew Ground Support training in Mississauga

IHSA’s popular electrical utilities industry-focused program expands to serve more Ontario workers.

Building on its success in Northern Ontario, IHSA’s Line Crew Ground Support (LCGS) program recently expanded to the Greater Toronto Area—and celebrated a new class of safety-focused graduates who are ready to enter the electrical utility and construction sectors.

As Ontario’s population grows, so does the demand for skilled workers who can safely maintain and support the electrical grid. LCGS workers provide essential assistance to powerline technicians as they connect and maintain powerlines, by handing up tools and material, digging ditches, pulling cables, and loading and unloading supplies.

IHSA’s LCGS program is the only one of its kind in the province. After successfully completing 15 weeks of hands-on and in-class training, graduates are ready to become productive workers in an industry with plenty of room to grow.

The LCGS program’s Indigenous roots

IHSA began providing LCGS training in 2013 with a focus on Indigenous workers: the program launched at Sudbury’s Cambrian College in collaboration with Gezhtoojig Employment and Training Services. Since then, LCGS has been offered in Fort William, Ottawa, Thunder Bay, Tyendinaga, and Walpole Island in partnership with Indigenous stakeholders and communities. Hundreds of program alumni are now helping their communities connect to clean energy infrastructure, reducing their reliance on expensive, non-renewable sources of electricity and heat like diesel fuel.

The latest groups of LCGS graduates, whose training took place at IHSA’s Skills Development Centre in Mississauga, reflect the GTA’s rich diversity. Having finished their training in December 2024 and April 2025, respectively, these skilled workers are now prepared to join an industry that offers potentially lucrative opportunities and the chance to continue growing their careers.

Powering up health and safety know-how

But jobs in the electrical and construction industries come with significant risks. Proper health and safety training is an effective way to reduce those risks, so the LCGS program includes extensive instruction on topics like confined space awareness, safe pole handling, and rescue practices.

“Graduates leave the program with a very desirable skill set and a strong foundation on how to work safely,” says Alain Leger, Director, High Risk Activity Training and Operations at IHSA. “They also understand the relevant health and safety legislation and regulations—the reasons why workers have to follow certain practices and procedures.”

Participants also benefit from IHSA’s industry and stakeholder partnerships. For example, the Canadian Union of Skilled Workers (CUSW) supports the LCGS program and helps to place graduates with employers.

Students who complete the LCGS program have an improved likelihood of gaining employment because they receive significant and relevant credentials that are important for working in the industry. Ultimately, graduates come away from LCGS training with 37 industry-recognized certificates. Equipped with knowledge of health and safety best practices, the majority of LCGS graduates go on to find employment as powerline ground crew, tower assemblers, and powerline technician apprentices at various power and construction companies throughout Ontario.