Area businesses should take note of the new Canada Job Grant program, if they have employees with training requirements or need to train prospective employees, says Dennis Silvestrone, Okanagan College’s director of continuing studies and corporate development.
“Under the new program, employers can access a subsidy of up to two-thirds of the cost (to a maximum of $10,000 per employee) for training that will help them in their work,” said Silvestrone.
The Canada Job Grant is part of the $65 million Canada-B.C. Job Fund Agreement provided by the Government of Canada.
While the grant will help employers and employees get the skills they need for the jobs of today and tomorrow, the fund will also ensure training programs exist to give vulnerable workers the skills to enter or progress in the job market.
Silvestrone hopes employers will consider OC as a source of that training and expertise as they contemplate applying for the program.
“We have a variety of training opportunities that employers can access as they consider their needs,” he said.
“From trades to health care, from project management to leadership to occupation-specific programs there is a great deal that OC has to offer.”
The training identified as eligible for the Canada Job Grant program includes, but is not limited to:
Essential skills training
Technical training
Business training
Management and leadership training
Short-term certificate training
The training grant is available to private and not for profit sector employers.
Participants need be Canadian citizens, permanent residents or designated as people entitled to work in Canada by Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada.
The training has to be completed within 52 weeks of receiving grant approval. The grant covers tuition fees or trainer-charged fees, mandatory student fees, fees for textbooks, software and other materials as well as examination fees.
Employers interested in the program can visit www.workbc.ca/canadabcjobgrant for further information.
For more information, contact Jennifer Gorman at 250 762-5445, ext. 4563 or Joanne Thomsen at 250-762-5445 ext. 2663.
Employers can also visit www.okanagan.bc.ca/jobsgrant or www.workbc.ca/canadabcjobgrant for more information.
