QUÉBEC, Nov. 5, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - Local youth, who have faced barriers to employment, are now better prepared to enter the job market thanks to four employment projects. To mark the recognition ceremony organized by the City of Québec, the Honourable Christian Paradis, Minister of Industry, Minister of State (Agriculture) and Member of Parliament for Mégantic-L'Érable, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, highlighted the efforts of the participants and the federal government's support for the projects.
"Our government's top priorities are job creation, economic growth and long-term prosperity," said Minister Paradis. "The Government of Canada'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."
Four youth employment centres in Québec City and area received a total of over $135,000 in Skills Link funding to help youth overcome barriers to employment. Skills Link is part of the Government of Canada's Youth Employment Strategy (YES).
Project participants attended employability workshops, where they acquired the skills, knowledge and confidence that will help them enter the job market or return to school.
With an annual budget 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.
Economic Action Plan 2012 is providing an additional $50 million over two years to enhance YES through a new initiative that will connect young Canadians with jobs that are in high demand and help them develop tangible skills and gain work experience.
The additional funding will be delivered through two Calls for Proposals—one for Career Focus and one for Skills Link. The Calls opened on September 5th and will close on November 2nd. Organizations across Canada are invited to apply. Information is available at servicecanada.gc.ca.
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 actionplan.gc.ca.
The Government of Canada is helping youth plan their careers, learn new skills and find jobs through enhanced online services available at Youth.gc.ca.
Backgrounder
The Youth Employment Strategy is the Government of Canada's commitment to help youth make a successful transition to the workplace.
Skills Link helps youth facing barriers to employment, including youth who are 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.
SOURCE: HUMAN RESOURCES AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CANADA
Marian Ngo
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: actionplan.gc.ca.
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