The Small Business Employee Support Program was so successful last year, it has been extended for another year. The second year of the Small Business Employee Support Program will aim to match 250 Islanders with local employers, create new jobs, enhance skill levels and generate new economic activity.
The Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, Solicitor General of Canada and Member of Parliament for Cardigan, along with the Honourable Don MacKinnon, Provincial Minister of Development, today announced plans of the extension.
"The Government of Canada is pleased to be a partner in this made-in-PEI agreement," said Minister MacAulay. "It will continue to provide Islanders with opportunities to enhance their employment skills, experience, and confidence. The program had excellent results in its first year and we are confident that the extension will be as successful."
The Small Business Employee Support Program provides Employment Insurance (EI) eligible participants with skills and work experience that will help prepare them for long-term employment. The program aims to match 250 eligible participants from across Prince Edward Island, with small businesses in the manufacturing, processing, and information technology sectors for a twelve-week job placement.
Minister MacKinnon noted that in its inaugural year, the Small Business Employee Support Program's investments created 196 new small business jobs throughout PEI.
"This program provides a win-win situation for Islanders and small businesses by linking the employment needs of unemployed individuals with the local economic development priorities of the province," said Minister MacKinnon. "Our job is to provide Islanders with access to the skills necessary to secure meaningful, long-term employment. And in light of last year's success, we are confident that this program can once again achieve that goal."
The program, a partnership between the Government of Canada and the Province of Prince Edward Island, is funded through the Canada/PEI Labour Market Development Agreement (LMDA). It will be delivered again by Enterprise PEI (EPEI) and co-managed with Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC).
Employers for the program will be selected from the private sector and must be capable of providing a valuable work experience with long-term sustainable employment as the goal. In 1998/1999, a total of 136 participants (70 percent) maintained jobs with their employers after completion of the program.
Ron Smith, owner and operator of Island Packaging, is one of the 126 businesses that participated in the program last year and is participating again this year. Over his two-year participation, Smith has hired four people to help with the day-to-day operation of his business and was pleased to find employees who fit well with his company.
"Today, with the costs of training being so high, a day or even a week of training isn't enough to make employees familiar with the work," said Smith. "Through this program, I can work with my employees for twelve weeks while receiving a wage subsidy to financially support my business during this training period. This program has definitely contributed to Island Packaging Ltd."
Gail Jenkins, an employee still working with Island Packaging, is very pleased with her full-time job. "It was nice to have the 12-week trial period from the program that allowed both me and my employer to decide if the arrangement was suitable for the long term," said Jenkins. "I was happy to find a job where I could use the experience I already had in dealing with people and working in an office environment."
This year's program has been operating since the end of May and already close to 100 people have been hired. Targeting efforts are continuing to attract businesses on PEI to participate in this year's program, with the goal of matching 150 more Islanders with jobs by May of 2000. The program will focus on the manufacturing, processing and information technology sectors, but will also consider other emerging sectors as potential clientele.
The Canada/PEI Labour Market Development Agreement is a co-operative partnership between the government of Prince Edward Island and Human Resources Development Canada. Under the agreement, the Governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island work together to design and tailor labour market employment programs to meet the specific needs of communities, employers and the unemployed on the Island, and to complement provincial programming in its economic priority sectors.
For further information concerning the Small Business Employee Support Program, contact your local Enterprise PEI office or Regional Services Centre; Nancy Hoegg, Human Resources Development Canada, (902) 566-7653; or Kandace Ling, LMCA, (902) 368-6574.
Visit the Labour Market Development Agreement web sites: http://www.pe.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/common/lmda/main.html or http://www.gov.pe.ca/development/labourmarket/index.asp