Edmundston, New Brunswick—The Government of Canada, in partnership with the Government of New Brunswick, will provide new funding to help Edmundston youth gain the skills, knowledge and experience they need to enter and succeed in the job market. The Honourable Bernard Valcourt, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency) (La Francophonie) and Member of Parliament for Madawaska–Restigouche, made the announcement today on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, and the Honourable Martine Coulombe, New Brunswick’s Minister of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour.
“Our government’s top priority is creating jobs and economic growth,” said Minister of State Valcourt. “Our government’s Youth Employment Strategy is helping youth develop the skills and gain the experience they need to get jobs now and prepare for the workforce of tomorrow.”
The organization Resnet Inc. will receive over $55,000 as part of the Skills Link program to help youth overcome barriers to employment. Skills Link is part of the Government of Canada’s Youth Employment Strategy (YES).
The Government of New Brunswick will provide $135,600 for the project.
“We are proud to contribute to this workforce training project through our employment access programs,” stated Minister Coulombe. “This initiative will also help protect the environment, as the recycling of computer materials will lead to fewer electronic devices being sent to landfills.”
With annual funding of more than $300 million, YES helps youth, particularly those facing barriers to employment, obtain career information, develop employment skills, find jobs and stay employed. YES includes the Skills Link and Career Focus programs and the Canada Summer Jobs initiative, which creates thousands of job opportunities for students every summer.
In the 2012 Economic Action Plan, the government proposes an additional 50 million dollars over two years for the Youth Employment Strategy to help more youth acquire practical skills and concrete experience. This investment will serve primarily to connect young Canadians with jobs in fields that are in high demand.
Participants in the Resnet Inc. project will attend workshops that will prepare them for an active life and help them acquire skills that are transferrable to the labour market, such as communications and problem solving. They will then have an opportunity to put those skills into practice through concrete work experience.
Youth employment programs are part of the Government of Canada’s broader strategy to create an educated, skilled and flexible workforce. The Government underscored its commitment to this strategy in Canada’s Economic Action Plan. A key component of the Plan is to create more and better opportunities for Canadian workers through skills development. To learn more about Canada’s Economic Action Plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.
The Government of Canada is helping youth prepare for, find and maintain meaningful employment through enhanced online services available at Youth.gc.ca.
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For more information, contact:
Alyson Queen
Director of Communications
Office of Minister Finley
819-994-2482
Media Relations Office
Human Resources and
Skills Development Canada
819-994-5559
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This news release is available online at: www.actionplan.gc.ca.
Skills Link helps youth facing barriers to employment, such as single parents, youth with disabilities, and youth in rural and remote areas, to develop the skills and gain the experience needed to find a job or the confidence to return to school.
Career Focus provides funding to employers to hire young post-secondary graduates to give them career-related work experience and help them acquire skills to transition into the job market.
Canada Summer Jobs provides funding to not-for-profit organizations, public-sector employers and small businesses with 50 or fewer employees to create summer job opportunities for young people aged 15 to 30 years who are full-time students intending to return to their studies in the next school year.
To learn more about Canada’s Youth Employment Strategy and other youth employment initiatives, please visit Youth.gc.ca.
