A new WorkBC office is scheduled to open in Smithers April 1.
Kopar Administration out of Prince George was the successful bidder last year to take over the contract for the Province’s employment services.
“We’re excited to be coming back to Smithers,” said Ken Newell, “Kopar was there for several years up until June 2015, so we’re kind of excited to be coming back.”
The new office is located at 3851 First Avenue. Aside from that, the services will be largely unaffected, Newell said.
“One of the biggest changes is everybody coming into the centre has to register in the ministry’s system, but that’s a minor thing, really, and we’ll have staff to help out so it’s not a big deal,” he explained. “Other than that, it should be a rather seamless transition, we’re hoping.”
While the opening is less than two weeks away, and despite the fact the ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction told The Interior News in an email that “it is expected most of” the nine employees who worked in the old office “will find an opportunity with the new provider,” the new office is not yet fully staffed.
“It is a different service and we do have some of our staff that we’ve already identified to be out there, but at the same point in time we haven’t had that many applications, so we’re looking for more people to apply for the positions we’re posting,” he said.
The former employees were not automatically retained, but Newell said there may yet be place for some of them with Kopar.
“They’d be more than welcome to apply for positions here and for our new office in [Smithers] as well,” Newell said.
Although the services provided may remain largely unchanged, there are legislated changes to eligibility for those services.
The ministry is moving to an outcome-based funding model, extending eligibility for specialized services to anyone who has paid into employment insurance (EI) for five of the last 10 years, and helping people find a better job if their hours are unstable or if the work is not in line with their skills.
The government also announced two new programs: the Assistive Technology Services program, which offers adaptive technology for people with disabilities to pursue employment opportunities; and apprentice services, including processing financial support applications and helping apprentices collect EI benefits while in school.
