The Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Employment and Social Development, and the Honourable Jackson Lafferty, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, today signed an agreement in principle on the Canada Job Grant.

Announced in Economic Action Plan 2013, the Canada Job Grant is an innovative way of delivering training that will lead to a guaranteed job. It involves employers in training decisions so that Canadians will be equipped with the skills and training they need to fill available jobs. It is designed to be flexible enough to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes, in all industries and regions.

The Canada Job Grant is part of the Government of Canada’s commitment to address the paradox of too many Canadians without jobs in an economy of too many jobs without Canadians.

Quick Facts

• According to the Conference Board of Canada, real economic growth in the Northwest Territories is expected to rise by 1.3 percent in 2014, by 2.5 percent in 2015 and by a robust 7.9 percent in 2016. 
• BuildForce Canada has noted that the Northwest Territories generates nearly 50 percent of all economic activity in Canada’s territories. 
• In the next 10 years, Canada is expected to need 319,000 new workers in the construction sector, with another 145,000 new workers in the mining sector and 130,000 new workers in the petroleum sector needed by 2020.

Quotes

“Our government’s top priorities are creating jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity. The Canada Job Grant will ensure that employers put more skin in the game and that skills training leads to a guaranteed job. This is good news for residents of the Northwest Territories, who will have better access to training that leads to real, guaranteed jobs and who will get a better bang for their buck on funding for skills training. It is also good news for the economy of the Northwest Territories, because the Canada Job Grant will increase employer investment in skills training and help employers train Canadians for jobs that need to be filled so their businesses can grow and succeed.”
– The Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Employment and Social Development 

“One of the main focal points for Northerners is to ensure we are matching skills to jobs. With the increased labour activity across our territory, we must have the ability to provide support and training for our residents to ensure their readiness for employment opportunities. A flexible labour market agreement will allow us to prepare all our residents with the appropriate training and skills development programs, and enable our Regional Training Committees and Partnerships to identify and coordinate training for our residents. This also allows us to support our employers to contribute to a skilled workforce and further the economic success of the Northwest Territories.” 
– The Honourable Jackson Lafferty, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment