In light of the Canada Job Grant’s success, the Governments of Canada and Ontario have announced renewed funding.
Since its implementation in 2013, the Canada Job Grant has provided 29,000 training opportunities to 22,000 new and current Ontario employees. The grant aims to provide hands-on training to new workers in order to guarantee future employment.
With employment in Ontario expected to grow at an annual 1.2 per cent by 2017, it is critical that workers build the skills they need to fill available jobs. By that time, over $115 million will be available for the grant in Ontario.
“Our skilled workforce has been and must continue to be Ontario’s single greatest competitive advantage,” says the Honourable Reza Moridi Colleges and Universities and Minister of Research and Innovation. “Employers have told us that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to skills training programs, and that is why our government continues to work so hard with job creators in Eastern Ontario and across the province to develop flexible and effective skills training solutions.”
In Ontario, the Canada Job Grant requires employers to pay one third of employee training costs. Small businesses have the option to make their contribution through the participating employee’s wages.
The Honourable Pierre Poilivere, Minister of Employment and Social Development, sees the grant as an investment in the future economy.
“The Canada Job Grant is taking skills training choices out of the hands of government and putting them where they belong: in the hands of employers and Canadians who want to work,” Poilivere says. “By having employers directly involved in training decisions, the Canada Job Grant will lead to guaranteed jobs and will help businesses grow and succeed. And that is good news for the Canadian economy.”
