Applicant guide: Funding to support workers and employers towards economic recovery - Sectoral Workforce Solutions Program

On this page

• Part 1: Organization
• Part 2: Project
• Part 3: Funding
• Part 4: Attestation

Part 1: Organization

A. Organization identification

Question 1: Legal name

What is your organization’s legal name? The legal name is usually:

• the name on your registration with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)
• the name used on funding cheques

Question 2: Operating (common) name (if different from legal name)

What is the operating (or common) name of your organization (if it differs from the legal name)?

Question 3: Business or registration number

What is your 15-digit CRA business number? (For example, 123456789 RR 0001). For registered charities and not-for-profit organizations, what is your registration number?

You can find your CRA business number on tax-related documents or written communications from the CRA.

For more information, please visit the CRA website.

You must provide one of following documents if you do not have a:

• CRA business number
• charity registration number
• not-for-profit registration number

If incorporated:

• a copy of letters of patents
• articles of incorporation
• certificate of incorporation
• memorandum of association
• your rules, by-laws, or constitution

If not incorporated:

• a copy of your rules, bylaws, council resolutions, or constitution

Question 4: Organization type

Choose one of the following:

• not-for-profit organization
• for-profit organization
• municipal government
• Indigenous organization including:
  • Band Council
  • Tribal Council
  • Self-government entity
• provincial and territorial governments, such as:
  • institution
  • agency
  • Crown corporation

Question 5: Organization category

Your answer must be one of the following.

Not-for-profit sector:

• Indigenous educational institution
• Indigenous not-for-profit group
• Association of workers and/or of employers
• Local community, charitable, voluntary organization
• National non-governmental organization
• Non-governmental organization with a focus to encourage employment
• Not-for-profit Band Council
• Provincial non-governmental organization
• Sector council
• Union

Private sector:

• Banking
• Business (incorporated or unincorporated)
• Indigenous Band corporation (profit basis)
• International sector
• Private Band Council
• Private university or college

Public sector:

• Crown corporation
• Municipal government or agency
• Provincial government or agency
• Public community college or vocational school
• Public degree-granting college
• Public degree-granting university
• Public Health
• School Board/Other educational institution
• Territorial government

Question 6: Year established

When was your organization established?

Questions 7 to 11: Organization address

What is the address of your organization? Give a complete address in a format recognized by Canada Post. See the Canada Post website for information.

Questions 12 to 14: Telephone, fax and email

What is your organization’s telephone number, fax number (if it has one) and email address?

Questions 15 to 19: Mailing address (if different from organization address)

What is the mailing address of your organization (if it differs from your organization’s address)?

Questions 20 and 21: Telephone and fax (if different from organization address)

What are your organization’s telephone and fax numbers (if the mailing address differs from your organization’s address)?

Question 22: Organization’s mandate

What are your organization’s main activities, including your mission and objectives?

B. Organization contact

Question 23: First name and last name

Who is the main contact person for the proposed project?

Question 24: Position title

What is the title of the contact person named in Question 23? For example: Business Owner, President, Executive Director.

Question 25: Preferred language of communication

What language (English or French) would your contact person prefer to use in writing and speaking?

Question 26: Organization contact (Address)

Does the address of your contact person differ from the organization address or the organization mailing address in Section A?

Questions 27 to 31: Contact address

If you answered “yes” in question 26, what is the address of your contact person?

Questions 32 and 33: Telephone and fax

What are the telephone and fax numbers of your contact person?

Question 34: Email address

What is the email address of your contact person? We will send all communications to this address.

Question 35 to 46: Secondary contact

If we cannot reach the main contact, who else can we contact? Provide the full name, telephone number we can reach during business hours and email address.

C. Organizational capacity

Question 47: How many employees does your organization currently have?

Indicate the total number of employees in your organization.

Question 48: Has your organization undergone any important transformations in the past two (2) years?

For the purpose of this funding process, the expression “important transformations” refers to events such as:

• a change in leadership in the board of directors or at the executive level
• an important reduction, increase or turnover in staff
• a merger with or split from another organization
• a change in mandate or main activities, etc.

If you answer “yes” to this question, provide a description of the changes.

Question 49: Describe how your organization has the experience and expertise to carry out the proposed project activities

Eligible proposals will be assessed to determine the organizations’ capacity to deliver demand-driven, high impact projects. Organizations will need to demonstrate that they have:

• an in-depth knowledge of skills issues in a sector or multiple sectors. This could include listing recent research, publications, reports, or consultations your organization has completed on topics such as:
  • current and upcoming labour market needs
  • training and upskilling needs
  • sector-specific labour market information
  • labour market forecasts
  • regulatory requirements
  • cross-sectoral common needs and challenges
• established partnerships with national, provincial, and/or regional sectoral stakeholders to ensure that projects are employer or industry-driven and meet sectoral needs. This could include:
  • active coalitions
  • networks
  • employer working groups or committees
• effective governance structures, including oversight committees, to support project management. This could include details on the governance and information about their Board of directors, for example:
  • Existence of the Board of directors
  • Board effectiveness: for example:
    • frequency of meetings, such as: quarterly
    • records of decision
  • Direction provided to the executive team on the overall operations of the organization
  • Subject to annual audits by an independent auditor
  • Staff turnover and talent attraction
  • Risk management and mitigation strategies
  • Transparency, for example:
    • availability of information
    • Annual General Meeting
  • Accountability, for example:
    • Annual Report
    • Annual General Meeting
• recent experience, within the last 5 years, delivering initiatives that support skills and workforce development

Questions 50 and 51: Does your organization owe any amount to the Government of Canada?

If ‘Yes’, complete the fields for each amount owing. We will not reject your application for this reason. However, you must provide details as to the type of debt and the arrangements you have for repayment.

Part 2: Project

A. Project identification

Question 52: Project title

Give a short title that describes your project.

Questions 53 and 54: Planned project start and end dates?

We expect that the project will start as early as fall 2022 and must end by March 31, 2024.

If your project addresses the policy priority area Supporting Demand-Driven Solutions for Sectors Hardest Hit by the Pandemic and Those Key to Recovery, project activities must launch within 2 months of the project start date.

You can only start your project activities after we have approved your project and signed a funding agreement. We can only pay for activities that start once a funding agreement is signed.

B. Project description

Question 55: Project Objectives (must clearly link to the program objectives)

You must:

• Identify and clearly state which of the three policy priority areas your project will focus on and identify which is the primary policy priority and any secondary ones:
  1. Building Talent for the Clean Economy
  2. Supporting Demand-Driven Solutions for Sectors Hardest Hit by the Pandemic and Those Key to Recovery*
  3. Investing in the Health Care Sector
• Describe what issue your project will address and how its project objectives will be achieved.
• Demonstrate how your proposal will increase the participation of equity-deserving groups in your sector or sectors and include diversity and inclusion principles in the design.

* project activities must launch within 2 months of the project start date.

Question 56: Project activities (give clear steps for each one)

Project activities are the steps that will be taken to meet the project objectives that you identified in your answer to Question 55.

Provide a clear and feasible plan to achieve the project objective(s), including timelines, within the prescribed timeframe outlined in Questions 53 and 54. There should always be a clear link between the activities and the objective(s). Please list the activities in a logical sequence, and provide descriptions where needed.

Projects must be either:

• National - with project activities occurring in at least 3 provinces/territories (PT); or
• Regional - where project activities occur in a province/territory, major economic hub*, or key sector-based cluster. To be considered for funding, regional-based projects can address sectoral workforce needs by pursuing more than one of the four project activities identified below, however one of these project activities must be ‘Creative Solutions’.

*Economic hub refers to a city or region where there is a dense area of workplace activity consisting of multiple large sectoral or cross-sectoral organizations.

You must clearly identify where the outlined activities will take place to meet one of the above requirements.

Your answer to this question must also include the following details:

• Milestones (milestones are significant events or points of progress during the project).
• Clear linkages between the proposed activities and the costs outlined in the budget. Costs associated with identified activities should be reflected in the Budget detail template.
• You must identify and clearly state which of the following types of project activities will be included in your project:
  1. Training and Reskilling
  2. Solutions for Employers
  3. Sector-wide Standards and Tools
  4. Creative Solutions

You must also describe the steps that your organization will take to meet the objective(s) of the project, by providing:

• clear and relevant descriptions of the project activities
• clear and feasible project timelines

Eligible activities are those that relate to the project objective(s) and support the achievement of the project and the Sectoral Workforce Solutions Program (SWSP) results and outcomes.

Eligible activities may include but are not limited to, the following:

1. Training and Reskilling: to help workers gain skills for the changing needs of industries, including helping workers transition to in-demand jobs or growing sectors:
   • Development of curriculum/training tools
   • Support for more flexible and responsive training models (micro-credential learning, certification laddering program, online courses, job placements, work-integrated learning opportunities, wage subsidies, cross-sectoral training)
2. Solutions for Employers: to assist employers, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with workforce issues such as:
   • Employer focused initiatives and tools for recruitment, retention, and capacity-building
   • Building employer networks, partnerships, or consortia to actively address issues
   • Employer strategies for sector-specific challenges
3. Sector-wide Standards and Tools: to help all stakeholders identify and address specific skills needs and trends by developing and implementing tools such as:
   • Research and forecasting to identify skills/labour gaps and develop outcome-based initiatives based on the findings (e.g., for sectoral workforce development planning)
   • Occupational standards and job matching tools
   • Skills recognition and certification systems
   • Educational or training material
4. Creative Solutions: developing and implementing creative solutions, including training-based initiatives, that would explore new ways of addressing labour market issues, in key sectors and/or occupations such as:
   • Innovative approaches to improve the resiliency/adaptability of workers and workplaces
   • Preparing workers and workplaces to promote the adoption of emerging technologies
   • Scaling-up pilot project results to respond to an identified need

A key priority of the SWSP is to support equity-deserving groups (including women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, Black Canadians and other racialized communities, newcomers, and LGBTQ2 communities).

All proposals must describe what measures will be taken to embed diversity and inclusion in their project design, activities and results. Project plans may include but are not limited to:

• Strategies to overcome barriers
• Measures to improve access to training and/or work experience
• Initiatives to increase employer capacity to attract, develop, and retain equity-deserving group members in their workforce

Funding priority may be given to proposals that demonstrate how they will increase the participation of equity-deserving groups in their sector(s) as a result of the project.

Projects involving individual participants must provide and/or fund the provision of wraparound supports as needed, to project participants who are facing barriers to participation, particularly but not exclusively for equity-deserving groups. The need for wraparound supports must be assessed on an individual basis and may include, but is not limited to:

• Temporary childcare and/or dependent costs
• Temporary accommodation
• Public transportation to and from project activities
• Access to technology relevant to project participation

Ineligible activities include, but are not limited to:

• Human resources tools developed solely for one organization's use
• Capital improvements, such as the construction or renovation of buildings
• Development of products that only one organization would use
• Duplication of previous or existing products/programs (this does not apply to scaling-up the successful or promising outputs/outcomes of small-scale or pilot projects, which is an eligible activity)
• Regular ongoing operational activities of an organization including administrative overhead not related to the SWSP project

Activity timelines:

If your project addresses the policy priority area "Supporting Demand-Driven Solutions for Sectors Hardest Hit by the Pandemic and Those Key to Recovery", project activities must launch within 2 months of the project start date and must clearly demonstrate this in the timelines.

The following is an example of a project timeline. Project timelines may be different based on policy priority area and proposed activities.

Months 1 to 2

• Hire a project coordinator; Create project steering committee
• Hold first project team meeting to ensure that everyone is informed of project scope, schedule, and their respective duties and responsibilities
• Develop communications materials such as brochures, posters and newspaper ads;
• Hold monthly steering committee meetings (ongoing)
• Engage with partners
• Develop training materials and tools

Months 3 to 16

• Recruit project participants
• Deliver training sessions to project participants

Month 17 to 21

• Collect data/information on project participants trained, and prepare reports
• Provide annual reports on Results Measurement Indicators to ESDC
• Prepare and submit a final report to ESDC

Question 57: What do you expect the project to deliver and produce (project outcomes and outputs)?

Outcomes are the short-term and medium-term changes that you expect the project to deliver. You can link more than one outcome to an objective. Outcomes answer the questions, “How do we know the project is a success?” and “How do the activities address the workforce needs of Canadian workers and employers?”

Your outcomes should align with the SWSP outcomes included below (as applicable and not limited to):

• Canadian workers participate in sectoral training and transition initiatives to enhance their skills and employability
• Canadian workers have access to wrap around supports
• Employers and stakeholders access and use workforce solutions, labour market intelligence and/or other tools to manage their skills and employment needs
• Employers have increased access to skilled workers to meet current and emerging workforce needs in key sectors of the economy
• Employers have an improved ability to recruit, onboard, and/or retain workers, including an improved ability to target equity-deserving groups

Outputs are direct products or services that you will produce to get the outcomes you want. They answer the question, “What will the project produce?”

Organizations will be required to report on results.

You must describe:

• How the sector(s) will benefit from the project
• The expected results of your project (outcomes and outputs). They must be specific, concrete and measurable

The minimum performance target for the number of training participants is 250*.

The minimum number of employers accessing and using project solutions or tools is 50 (for projects whose focus is not on delivery of training initiatives)*.

Priority may be given to projects that go above the minimum targets.

You must identify the expected results for the following, as applicable to your project objective(s) (including disaggregated results for equity-deserving groups where indicated):

• Number of participants who access or participate in training and transition initiatives, including those from equity-deserving groups (through self-identification)
• Number of participants provided with wraparound supports to facilitate their participation in training or transition initiatives, gain work experience, enter and/or progress in the labour force
• If applicable: Number of participants supported by wage subsidies or training supplements, completion bonuses or other training incentives
• Number and percentage of participants who complete training or transition initiatives, including those from equity-deserving groups *
• Number of participants who earn a certificate, credential, or certification
• Number and percentage of participants employed following participation in a transition or training initiative
• Number of solutions developed to help workers and employers meet their skills and employment needs disaggregated by type (for example, employer solutions, such as recruitment, transition, onboarding or training, retention, tools adapted for specific equity-deserving groups, and system solutions, such as forecasts, labour market integration (LMI) on trends, occupational standards, certification programs, or sectoral systems)
• Number of employers and stakeholders accessing and using workforce solutions, labour market intelligence and tools (by large, medium and small enterprises
• Number and percentage of employer end-users of program products that report being better-able to: locate and recruit skilled workers to meet demand in targeted sectors; onboard and retain workers more effectively; recruit workers from equity-deserving groups; and/or make more informed workforce planning decisions

* Priority may be given to projects that identify a high percentage of individuals participating in an intervention self-identifying as part of equity-deserving groups.

Question 58: Does the project include indicators to measure results?

Your answer to this question must be “yes”.

You must describe how you plan to gather, measure and report on results achieved by your project. Your performance indicators must align with the Program's performance indicators above (where applicable and not limited to). This will allow the Program to report aggregate results quarterly/annually where indicated.

Some examples of indicators include (but are not limited to):

• Number of participants who access or participate in training and transition initiatives, including those from equity-deserving groups (through self-identification)*
• Number of participants provided with wraparound supports to facilitate their participation in training or transition initiatives, gain work experience, enter and/or progress in the labour force
• Number of participants supported by wage subsidies or training supplements, completion bonuses or other training incentives (if applicable)
• Number and percentage of participants who complete training or transition initiatives, including those from equity-deserving groups*
• Number of participants who earn a certificate, credential, or certification
• Number and percentage of participants employed following participation in a transition or training initiative
• Number of solutions developed to help workers and employers meet their skills and employment needs disaggregated by type for example:
  • employer solutions, such as:
    • recruitment
    • transition
    • onboarding or training
    • retention
    • tools adapted for specific equity-deserving groups
  • system solutions, such as:
    • forecasts
    • LMI on trends
    • occupational standards
    • certification programs
    • sectoral systems
• Number of employers and stakeholders accessing and using workforce solutions, labour market intelligence and tools (by large, medium and small enterprises).**
• Number and percentage of employer end-users of program products that report being better-able to:
  • locate and recruit skilled workers to meet demand in targeted sectors
  • onboard and retain workers more effectively
  • recruit workers from equity-deserving groups
  • make more informed workforce planning decisions.

* Priority may be given to projects that identify a high percentage of individuals participating in an intervention self-identifying as part of equity-deserving groups.

** For data on end-users access, usage, and abilities, project recipients will likely need to survey employers and stakeholders (“end-users”).

Question 59: Does this proposed project fit with your organization’s other activities?

If “yes”, describe how your project relates to the work your organization is doing now.

Question 60: Will any of the project activities take place somewhere other than where your organization is located?

If “yes”, give the main address first and then add other addresses.

If you have more than 5 locations, please continue your answer in Appendix A.

Question 61: Will your project benefit or involve people in English or French language minority communities?

We commit to enhance the vitality of the English and French linguistic minorities in Canada. We support and assist their development and foster the full recognition and use of both English and French in Canadian society. Official language minority communities are English-speaking communities established within the province of Québec and French-speaking communities established outside the province of Québec.

Answering “No” to this question will not invalidate your application.

If your proposed project involves official language minority communities, you should answer “yes” to this question. Complete the question following the instructions in the application form.

In addition, identify the linguistic profile of the beneficiaries targeted by your project, document any special needs of the official language minority communities, and indicate whether or not they were consulted. The related budgetary items can be identified in Part 3 of the Application for Funding.

Find more information about official language minority communities

Question 62: Will any other organizations, networks or partners be involved in carrying out the project?

Your project must involve partnerships with national, provincial, and/or regional sectoral stakeholders to ensure that projects are employer or industry-driven and meet sectoral needs.

You must submit letters from your partner or partners confirming their participation in the project.

Question 63: Does the project address the program’s national, regional or local priorities?

Question 64: Does your project include activities that are listed in Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) Regulations Designating Physical Activities established under the Canadian Impact Assessment Act 2019

Not applicable for this process. Answer “no” to this question.

Part 3: Funding

A. Anticipated sources of funding

You must have cash and/or in-kind contributions equal to or more than 10% of the total cost of your project. * This must come from sources other than ESDC. We will accept cash and/or in-kind contributions.

If we select your project, we will ask you to submit a letter confirming the cash and/or in-kind contribution from a source other than us. That letter will need to confirm that the cash and/or in-kind contribution will be available when you will begin the project.

Question 65: Source name

Tell us the names of all the organizations that will contribute cash and/or in-kind contributions to this project. You must have cash and/or in-kind contributions from sources other than ESDC equal to or more than 10% of your total project costs.

Question 66: Source type

Identify the type of organization(s) that contribute to your project. Use this list:

• not-for-profit organization
• municipal government
• provincial and territorial governments, such as:
  • institution
  • agency
  • Crown corporation
• Indigenous organization including:
  • band council
  • tribal council
  • self-government entity
• international organization
• coalition, network or committee
• research organization or institute
• educational institution
• public health and social service institution
• for‑profit organization

Question 67: Cash contributions

Tell us the total value of cash contributions you will receive.

Question 68: In-kind contributions

If you are getting an in-kind contribution, tell us how much it is worth.

In-kind contributions are goods or services that people or organizations give for free. Your organization, other organizations or partners can make in-kind contributions. In-kind contributions include free:

• equipment
• services
• labour that you receive for free

To be eligible an in-kind contribution must be:

• essential to the project's success
• supported by a commitment from the contributor

In-kind contributions will only be recognized when fair value can be reasonably estimated.

Question 69: Confirmed cash and in-kind

Tell us if the contributions are confirmed.

B. Budget

List each activity and its associated cost in your Application for funding (PDF Format) and Budget detail template (PDF Format). The amounts must be the same in both documents. Your costs must be reasonable and support your project activities.

Question 70: Cost category

Use the Budget detail template (PDF Format). Please provide a breakdown of the cost per activity and per year.

We can only pay you back for eligible costs. Eligible costs must directly relate to your project activities.

Here are some examples of eligible expenditures:

• Overhead costs, including costs related to central administrative functions of the recipient organization that are drawn upon to support agreement activities (such as: shared postage, telephones, information technology maintenance and head office support) up to 15% of the total Department of ESDC financial support for the project
• Materials and supplies
• The purchase or rental of tools, equipment, computers and furniture
• Wages and mandatory employment-related costs
• Professional fees (consultants, research, audit, translation)
• Training and professional development for staff
• Honorary costs limited to industry standards
• Hospitality costs
• Travel costs, in accordance with the National Joint Council’s Travel Directive;
• Printing and communication
• Computer services, library expenses, research and evaluation costs, and collection and analysis of data
• Digitization costs, such as adapting existing training, curricula, and other resources to an online platform
• Wraparound support costs related to participation in project activities, such as:
  • temporary accommodation costs
  • temporary childcare costs
  • transportation costs to and from project activities
  • expenses related to specialized services, arrangements or equipment
• Other administrative expenses that are agreed to by both parties
• Participants’ wage and training subsidies, completion bonuses or other incentives

Questions 71 to 73: Planned spending ($) (ESDC/Other, Cash/Other, In-kind)

If applicable, give the total planned spending from all sources, including ESDC. The amounts should align with those that you put in section A. Anticipated sources of funding of your Application for funding.

“Other” means a cash or in-kind contribution from other sources other than ESDC.

You must have cash and/or in-kind contributions from sources other than ESDC equal to or more than 10% of your total project costs*.

C. Budget details

Question 74: Associated businesses or individuals

Check all statements that apply to your planned spending of the funding from ESDC.

Question 75: Capital assets: Will capital assets be among your planned expenditures with ESDC funding?

Answer “yes” or “no”.

If “yes”, explain how your project will benefit from buying capital assets.

A capital asset is any single or composite asset that costs more than $1,000 (before taxes). A capital asset is not part of another product, and you can still use it at the end of the project.

A composite asset is a group of assets that form one unit, where you need everything for the asset to work. A group of assets is a single capital asset if the total cost is more than $1,000 (before taxes).

For example, a composite capital asset is:

• a personal computer with a hard drive
• a monitor
• a keyboard
• a mouse
• cables

Four chairs that each cost $300 are not capital assets because each chair works on its own. The chairs cost less than $1,000 (before taxes).

Question 76: Further budget details

Include a breakdown of your total costs per fiscal year (April 1 to March 31).

As an example, this could be the breakdown for a 2-year project with $50,000,000 in eligible costs:

• September, 2022, to March 31, 2023: $20,000,000
• April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024: $30,000,000

Part 4: Attestation

To be considered eligible, an official representative must attest that they:

• have the capacity and the authority to submit an Application for Funding on behalf of the organization;
• certify that the information provided in the Application for Funding and any supporting documentation is true, accurate, and complete; and
• have read the applicant guide and understood the program’s requirements.

To do this, the official representative must provide their name, title and the date. As this is an attestation, no signature is required.