Government of Canada invests to help youth in Brandon get jobs

BRANDON, MB, April 12, 2013 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada is providing support for youth in Brandon to help them gain the skills, knowledge and experience they need to enter and succeed in the job market. The announcement was made by Merv Tweed, Member of Parliament for Brandon-Souris, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.

"Our government's top priorities are creating jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity," said Mr. Tweed. "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."

Career and Employment Youth Services is receiving over $163,000 from 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).

Participants will attend workshops to gain valuable life and job skills including computer skills, effective communication and résumé preparation. They will also benefit from on-the-job experience with employers through personalized work placements.

"Career & Employment Youth Services would like to thank the Government of Canada for its continued support," said Shirley Hammond, CEYS Project Coordinator. We are very excited to be able to help youth in Brandon gain employment skills and work experience."

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 provided an extra $50 million over two years to enhance YES with a new initiative that connects young Canadians with jobs that are in high demand and helps them develop tangible skills and gain work experience. Economic Action Plan 2013 proposes an additional investment of $70 million over three years to support 5 000 more paid internships.

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.

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Backgrounder

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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

For further information:

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: actionplan.gc.ca.