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The Government of Canada helps London
youth prepare for the job market

London, ontario, January 18, 2011—Local youth who face barriers to employment will get job preparation training and work experience through the Government of Canada’s support for two employment projects. Mr. Ed Holder, Member of Parliament for London West, made the announcement today on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.

“For many young Canadians, making the transition to the job market can be tough, especially in today’s environment,” said Mr. Holder. “That’s why our government is creating opportunities for youth to succeed through support for organizations like Youth Opportunities Unlimited.”

With assistance from the federal Skills Link program, Youth Opportunities Unlimited will deliver two projects to help 285 young Londoners develop the skills and experience needed to find a job or the confidence to return to school.

Through the first project, entitled Youth Endeavouring for Success, the participants will attend life and employability skills workshops focusing on topics such as job search techniques, communication and problem solving.

The second project, entitled Enterprise Services, will allow the participants to acquire employability skills through workshops and gain on-the-job experience at Youth Opportunities Unlimited.

Skills Link helps youth facing barriers to employment, such as single parents, Aboriginal youth, youth with disabilities, recent immigrants, youth living in rural and remote areas, and youth who have dropped out of high school.

Youth Opportunities Unlimited will receive over $962,000 in federal Skills Link funding to support these projects.

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BACKGROUNDER

As part of the Government of Canada's Youth Employment Strategy, the Skills Link program is one of three programs that help young Canadians, particularly those facing barriers to employment, obtain career information, develop skills, gain work experience, find good jobs and stay employed. The other two programs are Summer Work Experience and Career Focus.

Skills Link helps youth between 15 and 30 years of age who are not receiving Employment Insurance benefits develop basic and advanced employment skills. It assists participants through a coordinated, client-centred approach that offers longer-term supports and services tailored to their specific needs to help them find and keep a job.

Through the 2010 "Jobs and Growth Budget," the Government of Canada committed an additional $60 million to the Skills Link and Career Focus programs. This additional one-time investment will enable more young Canadians to gain the experience and skills they need to successfully participate in the job market while the economy recovers.

Youth employment programs are also part of the Government of Canada's strategy to create the best educated, most skilled and most flexible workforce in the world. The Government underscored its commitment to this strategy in Canada's Economic Action Plan. A key component of the Plan is to create more and better opportunities for Canadian workers through skills development. To learn more about Canada's Economic Action Plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.

The Skills Link program is delivered by Service Canada, which provides one-stop personalized services for Government of Canada programs, services and benefits. For more information about this program, visit servicecanada.gc.ca, call 1 800 O-Canada or drop by your local Service Canada Centre.