Government commits to helping young people on Manitoulin Island
To the Expostior:
RE: “Jobs for Youth’ funded program drops to 7 spots in ’16 from 58 in ‘15,” October 14, page 1.
Youth on Manitoulin Island, and across the province, will continue to have access to a variety of employment supports, including summer job opportunities, through a suite of new programs that build on the best practices of programs like ‘Jobs for Youth,’ previously offered by the Ministry of Children and Youth Services.
In September I was thrilled to announce Youth Job Connection, a two-part program that will provide supports and training to young people facing complex and multiple barriers to employment, including poverty, homelessness, a disability or a mental illness.
The first part of this program will provide training, employment and mentorship opportunities to youth 15 to 29 who are not working, in school or enrolled in a training program. The second part will provide summer, part-time and after-school job opportunities for high school students aged 15 to 18.
Three times as many services providers have been invited to deliver Youth Job Connection, including those currently offering Jobs for Youth. This program will continue to provide a similar service at all former Jobs for Youth Sites, so there will be no gaps in services for youth on Manitoulin Island, in the surrounding area and across Ontario.
In Spring 2016 we will launch the Youth Job Link to help all students and youth across the province find employment opportunities, including summer jobs. We have also invested an additional $25 million to enhance our Employment Service, which helps more than 70,000 young people each year.
All of this is part of our government’s renewed Youth Jobs Strategy. Ontario is investing an additional $250 million over the next two years, to service up to 150,000 more youth through these programs.
Our government is committed to helping young people on Manitoulin Island and across the province find exciting and rewarding employment opportunities that will allow them to pursue their passions.
Reza Moridi
Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities
