February 19, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NORTON, New Brunswick— Rob Moore, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and Member of Parliament for Fundy Royal, on behalf of the Honourable Monte Solberg, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, today announced funding to help young people from the Norton area gain work experience.
“The Government of Canada is committed to creating the best educated, most skilled, and most flexible work force in the world,” said Mr. Moore. “Our partnership with Portage Atlantic will help young people who face barriers to employment get the skills, knowledge, and experience they need to find work.”
Portage Atlantic will help young people from the Norton area develop the life and employability skills they need to enter the labour force or return to school. Participants in the program will become more employable by completing a range of tasks during their work placements.
The Government of Canada is committing $35,104 to this project through Skills Link, one of Canada’s youth-employment programs. The Skills Link program involves employers, community organizations, and other levels of government in ensuring that young people have the opportunity to develop their skills and become contributing members of their communities.
This project reflects the Government of Canada’s commitment to creating a strong economy for all Canadians. Through its Advantage Canada plan, the Government is building on Canada’s strengths and gaining a global competitive advantage by reducing taxes for all Canadians, increasing competition in the marketplace, and building modern infrastructure.
Service Canada brings Government of Canada services and benefits together in a single delivery network. It provides Canadians with one-stop service they can access however they choose—by phone at 1 800 O-Canada, on the Internet at servicecanada.gc.ca, or in person at Service Canada Centres across the country.
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Backgrounder
Skills Link
The Skills Link program is one of three Government of Canada programs that help young Canadians (aged 15 to 30) obtain career information, develop skills, gain work experience, find good jobs, and stay employed. The two other programs are Summer Work Experience and Career Focus.
Skills Link focuses on helping young people who face barriers to employment. These young people include high school drop-outs, single parents, Aboriginal youth, people with disabilities, youth in rural areas, and recent immigrants. Summer Work Experience helps secondary and post-secondary students find summer jobs. Career Focus helps post-secondary graduates develop advanced skills and find careers in their fields. All three programs provide a range of activities that can be tailored to meet individual needs.
Projects funded under the Skills Link program have been reviewed to ensure compliance with the Department’s administration of its grants and contributions programs, and are subject to review under the Financial Administration Act.
