Statement - Harper Government welcomes agreement of Atlantic Provinces on apprentice harmonization

Statement by the Honourable Pierre Poilievre, Minister of Employment and Social Development

OTTAWA, June 30, 2015 /CNW/ - Today I wish to congratulate the Council of Atlantic Premiers on continuing to lead the way in harmonizing apprenticeship training and improving labour mobility by signing the Atlantic Memorandum of Understanding Concerning Apprentice Mobility.  As a result of this agreement, Canadians apprenticing in the Atlantic Provinces will now have access to consistent training, certification and standards, leading to more job opportunities and greater mobility while helping address skills shortages in this region.

The Atlantic Apprenticeship Harmonization Project is supported by the Government of Canada. This initiative, which is a first in Canada, will ensure apprentices can more easily train and work towards completing their certification anywhere in Canada.

• The Harper Government is also providing significant support to apprentices through various measures. In addition to tax credits and deductions, the Harper Government has issued over 530,000 apprenticeship grants and since January 2015, has provided over 8,000 Canada Apprentice Loans. It is estimated that at least 26,000 will benefit from these loans each year.
• The Harper Government also provides the Canada Job Grant which provides up to $15,000 per person for the direct costs of training, such as tuition and training materials, which includes up to $10,000 in federal government contributions.

In addition to supporting skills training, our Government recognizes that strong families and good jobs go hand in hand. In its continued efforts to help hard-working families, the Harper Government's Family Tax Cuts and Benefits plan is enhancing the Universal Child Care Benefit, introducing the Family Tax Cut and making improvements to the Child Care Expenses Deduction and the Children's Fitness Tax Credit.

Associated Link

Economic Action Plan
Government of Canada Programs for Apprentices
Canada Job Grant
Helping Families Prosper
Tax Savings

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SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada

Aaron Bell, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Employment and Social Development, 613-220-3230, [email protected]; Media Relations Office, Employment and Social Development Canada, 819-994-5559, [email protected]