New Boots: Progressing Women in Trades was launched in April 2018 following a 30-month pilot project.“The New Boots program has continued to be proven successful and not only am I pleased to see it continue; our government is taking steps to ensure that it will,” said Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour Minister Trevor Holder.“It has succeeded in getting more women to register for apprenticeship and has been an important resource hub for women in construction-related skilled trades.”The cost of extending the program to March 31, 2023 is just under $500,000, according to the province.“Over the past five years the New Boots network has expanded from a cohort of 14 tradeswomen to over 250 tradeswomen today. Employers are also seeing an increase in women filling positions in the skilled trades,” said Jean Marc Ringuette, president of New Brunswick Building Trades Unions.Since its inception, the province says, the New Boots program has established connections for and among hundreds of female trades workers around the province.However, over the next three years, the program has set new goals to help women in trades.According to the province, these goals include connecting 36 women annually to a skilled trade job, increasing the program’s social media presence by 25 per cent, creating new opportunities for participants by fostering relationships among trades groups and employers, and finding more tradeswomen who can serve as counsellors to those who may face barriers entering male-dominated trades.The program is being sponsored by the Department of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour and led by a non-profit organization, Mentor Apprentice Program Strategic Workforce Services.The program has also been supported by the New Brunswick Building Trades Unions.