First Edition of The Calgary Job and Training Fair
The Job and Training Fair will be held for the first time in Calgary, on April 2 and 3, 2008. The first edition of the Calgary Job and Training Fair will take place at the Telus Convention Centre and will offer Calgary-based businesses a new pavilion for recruitment. The Beljob.ca team, a faithful partner of the event, will be present.
The Montreal Job and Training Fair, which takes place in Montreal on March 18 and 19, 2008, will launch its « Boulot d’ailleurs! », a new distance recruitment service developed by Expoz.Inc., a promoter of the Fair, in collaboration with Place aux Jeunes du Québec. Able now to set up meetings via webcam, recruiters located outside the greater metropolitan region will be able to interact with job-seekers without actually having to travel to them. Détail Québec, coordinator of the Retail Pavilion of the Montreal Job and Training Fair, as well as the local Montreal chapter of the Society of Automobile Engineers of Montreal (SAE Montreal), will also take part.
For more information, visit the website: www.jobandtrainingfair.com, or call 450 651 7407.
2007 Annual Report and 2008 Restructuring at Monster
On January 31, Monster will announce its annual and quarterly earnings to outline its achievements in 2007. The company also disclosed, in a recent internal memo, a significant restructuring of its executive and marketing teams as well as the settlement of its lawsuit against founder Andrew McKelvey, convicted of improper stock option backdating of a sum of eight million dollars. Sal Iannuzzi, appointed Chairman and CEO (replacing Steve Pogorzelski who left the company), entrusts Vice President Marci Reynolds with Sales Operations in North America. In Canada, Peter Gilfillan was named Vice President of Sales and General Manager, replacing Gabriel Bouchard who is pursuing other opportunities outside the company.
Fraudulent Job Offers!
In a recent official statement, Canada Post informed Canadians that several of its job offers, published in various newspapers and online, were fraudulent. An investigation lead by the security services of Canada Post revealed that applicants were redirected to an application form… for shopping. The victims of the fraud, who were asked to provide various types of personal information, had even in certain cases provided banking information.
Canada Post specifies that all of its job offers can be consulted online through its website : www.canadapost.ca/careers.
Newfoundland and Labrador achieve statistics record
The employment rate in Newfoundland and Labrador reached its highest in 30 years, while job market conditions continue to improve in the province.
Shawn Skinner, Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment, announced that the unemployment rate has hit a 25-year record low. In 2007, the number of working individuals increased by 1,400 from 2006, and the number of job-seekers has increased by 3,400.
$18,000 to Land a Job
WorldWide Workforce of Woodbridge, an Ontario employment agency, charged $18,000 to temporary foreign workers for finding them a job in Alberta, a direct violation of Alberta laws.
Of the seven men to whom the agency invoiced their services, several had already paid an installment of $10,000 even before arriving in Canada. Upon arrival, the men were required to sign blank post-dated cheques to cover, they were told, monthly payments on the remaining recruitment fee. Four of them signed employment contracts with a company in Edmonton, but when they presented themselves, the jobs in question were non-existent. Two others signed contracts with a different Edmonton company but quit their jobs after realizing that they were being paid much less than what had been stipulated in their contracts. The agency did nothing to place these men in new jobs, but fortunately, members of the Indian community, as well as a temporary foreign worker advocate, helped them find work.
In Alberta, recruitment agencies must be licensed in order to operate and cannot charge fees to workers for connecting them with employers. Service Canada immediately ordered the agency to cease all activity.
Leading Canadian Companies Mobilize to Prepare for the Future in IT
The economic impact of an IT labour shortage in Canada will be 10 billion dollars if the 90,000 information technology (IT) jobs – which will open up over the next five years – are not filled. In anticipation of this eventuality, Bell Canada has spearheaded the creation of the Canadian Coalition for Tomorrow’s IT Skills by joining together several prominent organizations, and not only those in the technology sector. Its objective is to address the factors contributing to the labour shortage, such as declining enrollments in IT programs, demographic shifts, and incongruity between the skills of available workers and the requirements of employers. By drawing public attention to the technology field and developing insights for securing the future of Canada’s IT workforce, the Coalition seeks to promote a healthy economy and avoid a decline in productivity and global competitiveness.
Study: Scientists and Engineers Contribute to Urban Growth
A study lead by Statistics Canada of 242 urban centers in America and Canada (more than 100,000 inhabitants) shows a correlation between long term employment growth and the education level of the population. Between 1980 and 2000, urban centers in which university-trained workers represented a high level of employment saw an annual growth of 2% (49% over 20 years), while the annual growth rate of a less-educated population was 1.6% (37% over the 20 year period). This correlation is especially true amongst engineering or science graduates who have in fact been found to propel urban growth. The study also shows that urban allure (culture, quality of life) is premised upon the dynamism of a city and thus upon its capacity to create jobs. The urban center is modeled much like a business: it will prove profitable if it is able to attract varied and exciting talent for its development.
$900,000 Towards Employment
The Exploits Community Employment Corporation (ECEC) recently signed three-year contracts with Service Canada and Human Resources, Labour and Employment (HRLE). A first of its kind in the history of the province, these agreements represent a total of $900,000.
Founded in 1987, the ECEC is a non-profit agency that provides employment services to persons with developmental disabilities. It also compensates a job coach who works one-on-one with the new employee until he/she is able to perform the duties and responsibilities of the job independently.