Secret data reveals which low-scoring applicants still received millions of dollars from the Ford government's skills fund

According to the internal documents that Labour Minister David Piccini has repeatedly refused to make public, the database entry beside the Carpenters’ ”$14,000,000” said the money awaited “Minister for signature.”

All payments over $5 million were personally signed off by Piccini, who faces accusations from opposition parties of picking favourites to benefit from the $2.5-billion worker training fund.

While the scores are such a closely guarded secret that not even cash recipients know how they fared, data on funding approvals in the first four months of this year has been shared with the Star. It details the specific sums given to 243 groups that were awarded more than $330 million — and includes critiques from ministry staff tasked with evaluating each proposal by a formalized set of criteria. 

The database tells the story of a minister handing out millions of dollars to organizations that in some cases got the money without first submitting detailed plans or budgets, according to civil servants’ documented comments under the spreadsheet heading “application risks.” 

It also reveals that ministry staff evaluations of projects — citing “risk” of failure or questionable budget plans — were often overruled by glowing comments labelled “minister’s rationale.” 

Piccini’s spokesperson told the Star civil servants “do not provide recommendations to the minister’s office.” He said that the minister’s staff and ministry officials “work together to select applications that meet government priorities,” and that all “requirements are met and undergo a risk assessment” with budgets approved prior to funding.

The premier and Piccini say the program has led to 100,000 “life-changing” jobs across all sectors including skilled trades. 

Scoring data shows that 87 proposals for training programs or equipment purchases were rated “medium” (63 to 72), while 85 were “low” (34 to 62) and 71 were rated “high” (73 to 100.)   

Three recipients had some of the lowest scores — under 50 per cent — but still received $1 million or more from the fund. 

KE Electrical had a rating of 40 and was awarded $2.7 million to help Ottawa-area job seekers learn about the trade. Newspaper chain Postmedia, parent company of the Toronto Sun and the National Post, received $1.04 million for artificial intelligence staff training and scored 41.68. Brampton-based Scooty Mobility, which rents e-scooters, scored 42 and was given $1 million to teach 100 workers about the “transformative impact of AI in fintech.” 

In last winter’s election campaign, the Carpenters council leaders praised Ford in Progressive Conservative campaign literature, endorsing the premier for re-election.

So did those representing heavy equipment trades through the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 793. Last March, Piccini signed over $7.419 million to that union’s training centre, known as the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario (OETIO). The money, the application said, would purchase training equipment .

Its score was 43. 

Ministry evaluators were concerned that the OETIO’s proposal “only focuses on training for incumbent workers” and “will not benefit any job seekers.” It is also “unclear,” the bureaucrats said, whether OETIO could meet its target of 650 participants since “training does not commence until halfway through the agreement.”

Scroll across the database, and the “minister’s rationale” column disagrees.

The project proponent, it said, “has demonstrated high levels of success in past rounds” of the Skills Development Fund, supports “under-represented” groups and “aligns with the SDF’s focus on creating resilient and skilled workers.”

Mike Gallagher, the IUOE’s business manager, said he was surprised to hear how low the training centre’s score was, considering the “value-added training” offered to apprentices and the construction industry.

Gallagher said the training group received funding before the IUOE endorsed Ford, but that the union has supported the Progressive Conservatives since the 2022 election campaign after examining all party platforms on issues reflecting the lives of skilled workers. 

“Just because IUOE Local 793 has now endorsed the PC party in the last two elections does not mean that we blindly support every decision of this government,” he said.     

The IUOE “openly criticized” the Ford government after it threatened to impose a contract on education workers, “which is a direct attack on workers’ right,” he noted. 

“There was no quid pro quo for IUOE Local 793 endorsing the PC party.”

Carpenters District Council president Tom Cardinal said his union received the funding because of “our proven track record of delivering industry-leading training.”

“Our programs have consistently helped produce skilled, safe workers to prepare them for good-paying unionized jobs in the construction industry to the betterment of our membership, signatory contractors, and Ontario as a whole,” Cardinal said.

Recipients confirmed they were unaware of their ranking from ministry evaluations. 

“We applied through the open, government-overseen process and are not aware of any scores or any other decision-making metrics,” Postmedia said in a statement. 

 “AI is an enormous threat to effective, reliable reporting and is massively disruptive to trusted Canadian journalism,” the spokesperson said. Its application, according to the database, promised to train 130 journalists and other staff in AI. 

Bureaucrats who evaluated the Postmedia proposal cited concerns with an “unclear” budget allocation, no in-house contributions and “negative media attention.” 

Labour ministry staff are trained to critique proposals using an “evaluation scoring rubric” that measures points such as organizational capacity, budget, project delivery and cost-sharing. The scores, according to government training manuals, are calculated automatically. 

Scooty hired two lobbyists with Tory connections including David DiPaul, a former Ford staffer. DiPaul’s lobbyist registry filing said he was hired to “identify and assist Scooty in navigating various grant and funding opportunities that may be available for a growing Ontario business.” 

Ministry staff gave Scooty a low rating for its plan to teach AI fundamentals and machine learning, saying there are “more risks to the application than strengths.” They cited “no prior experience,” a budget that “needs to be re-examined,” and a letter of support that “does not offer any placements though application says so.”

According to the “minister’s rationale,” Scooty deserved the money because it had “several community partners,” and its project would recruit under-represented workers and “enhance workforce resilience opportunity.” But this week, Piccini’s spokesperson said Scooty has “extensive experience” in AI and fintech through “proprietary software development” and partnerships with universities to provide training.

Scooty founder and CEO Shoaib Ahmed did not respond to repeated Star requests for comment.

The database revelations come as Ford’s office confirmed it has referred a forensic audit to the Ontario Provincial Police over concerns that one company, Keel Digital Solutions, received millions in government training funds from more than one ministry in previous years.

On Friday, the OPP confirmed that last week it was “contacted by the Treasury Board Secretariat’s Forensic Investigations Team reporting suspicious activity related to transfer payments from the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security to Get A-Head.”

“The matter has been assigned to the OPP Anti-Rackets Branch for assessment, to determine whether a criminal investigation is warranted. As the assessment is still in its early stages, we are unable to provide further comment or details at this time,” said police spokesperson Gosia Puzio.

A Keel spokesperson said the company “co-operated fully and transparently with the province’s forensic audit, supplying all requested documentation, including incorporation records and financial statements.”

Keel said it has “not been informed of any investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police.”

One of Keel’s subsidiaries, Get A-Head, got $4.97 million early this year.

Its skills development rating was 59.

With files by Robert Benzie