July 21, 2015 Toronto, Ontario Employment and Social Development Canada
The Harper Government is helping equip youth in Toronto and Hamilton with the skills and experience they need to find jobs. The announcement was made today by the Honourable Joe Oliver, Minister of Finance, Regional Minister for the Greater Toronto Area and Member of Parliament for Eglinton–Lawrence, along with Wladyslaw Lizon, Member of Parliament for Mississauga East–Cooksville, on behalf of the Honourable Pierre Poilievre, Minister of Employment and Social Development.
Through the Government’s Youth Employment Strategy, The Career Foundation will deliver four projects to help 210 youth in Toronto and Hamilton with an investment of more than $2.5 million. These projects will help young people successfully transition to the job market or return to school.
Project participants are learning or improving job skills through workshops and work experience with local employers in a variety of fields, including web design, computer programming and manufacturing. Participants are also benefiting from one-on-one coaching throughout their training and work experience.
Today’s announcement is one example of what the Harper Government is doing to create jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. To support hard-working families, the Government is also enhancing the Universal Child Care Benefit, introducing the Family Tax Cut, and improving to the Child Care Expenses Deduction and the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit.
“Today’s youth are tomorrow’s workforce, so by investing in them, we are creating jobs and growth now and long-term prosperity in the future. We are proud to work with organizations like The Career Foundation so young people can develop the skills they need to succeed in the job market. Under the strong leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, creating jobs and building a stronger economy remain our top priority, especially in these fragile economic times.”
– The Honourable Joe Oliver, Minister of Finance and Regional Minister for the Greater Toronto Area
“Many youth looking for work are struggling to get their foot in the door. And many have heard the tune: no experience, no job; no job, no experience. That is why our Government partners with organizations like The Career Foundation to give young people a chance to show what they can do.”
– Wladyslaw Lizon, Member of Parliament for Mississauga East–Cooksville
“Our mission is to assist all members of the community transition to employment. With this support from the Government of Canada, we are achieving these goals, for which we are very thankful. This funding enables our team to engage with clients in overcoming barriers to employment through a combination of career coaching, action plans, workshops and ongoing support, all resulting in sustainable employment.”
– Colin Morrison, Executive Director, The Career Foundation
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Employment and Social Development Canada
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The Youth Employment Strategy (YES) is the Harper Government’s commitment to help youth make a successful transition to the workplace. With annual funding of approximately $330 million, YES helps youth between the ages of 15 and 30 get the information and gain the skills and work experience they need to succeed in the workplace. YES includes the Skills Link and Career Focus programs, as well as the Canada Summer Jobs initiative, which creates thousands of job opportunities for students every summer.
Skills Link helps youth facing barriers to employment—including single parents, youth with disabilities, young newcomers 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. Skills Link has helped over 191,000 youth since 2006.
Career Focus helps post-secondary graduates transition to the job market through paid internships and helps to provide youth with the information and experience they need to make informed career decisions, find a job or pursue advanced studies. Since 2006, Career Focus has helped over 29,000 youth.
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. Since it began in 2007, Canada Summer Jobs has helped over 304,000 students.
Through Economic Action Plan 2014, the Harper Government is investing $40 million towards supporting up to 3,000 internships in high-demand fields and $15 million annually towards supporting up to 1,000 internships in small and medium-sized enterprises under YES.
The Government also provides a range of support—including Canada Student Loans, Canada Student Grants, the Canada Learning Bond and the Canada Education Savings Grant—to help young Canadians save for and pursue post-secondary education, so that they can acquire the skills and training they need to succeed in the job market.
Visit youth.gc.ca and CanLearn.ca for more information.
