MP Glover Announces Funding for Immigrant Youth to Prepare for the Job Market

StarBuzz Weekly, Toronto-October 05, 2011 10:00 ET-WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwire - Oct. 5, 2011) - The Government of Canada is providing job preparation training and work experience to local youth who are new to Canada and who face barriers to employment. Mrs. Shelly Glover, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for Saint Boniface, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, announced today that the Winnipeg Salvation Army will receive over $99,000 in federal Skills Link funding to support its Multicultural Family Centre project.

"For many newcomers, making the transition to the job market is a challenge, especially in today's environment," said Mrs. Glover. "That's why our government is creating opportunities for youth to succeed through support for initiatives like the Multicultural Family Centre project."

With assistance from the federal Skills Link program, the Winnipeg Salvation Army will help newcomers who have been affected by war develop the skills and experience needed to find a job or get the confidence to return to school.

Taking into consideration their unique experiences, project participants will work with counsellors to develop action plans for reaching their employment and educational goals. Based on their action plans, the participants will attend workshops that focus on topics such as workplace behaviour, coping with trauma and belonging to a community. Following the workshops, they will gain relevant work experience through job placements that reflect their needs and interests.

Skills Link helps youth facing barriers to employment, such as single parents, Aboriginal youth, youth with disabilities, recent immigrants, youth living in rural and remote areas, and youth who have dropped out of high school.

This news release is available in alternative formats upon request.

Backgrounder

As part of the Government of Canada's Youth Employment Strategy, the Skills Link program is one of three programs that help young Canadians—particularly those facing barriers to employment—obtain career information, develop skills, gain work experience, find good jobs and stay employed. The other two programs are Summer Work Experience and Career Focus.

Skills Link helps youth between 15 and 30 years of age who are not receiving Employment Insurance benefits develop basic and advanced employment skills. It assists participants through a coordinated, client-centred approach that offers longer-term supports and services tailored to their specific needs to help them find and keep a job.

Youth employment programs are also part of the Government of Canada's strategy to create the best educated, most skilled and most flexible workforce in the world. 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 Skills Link program is delivered by Service Canada, which provides one-stop personalized services for Government of Canada programs, services and benefits. For more information about this program, visit servicecanada.gc.ca, call 1 800 O-Canada or drop by your local Service Canada Centre.