The ACTEW Blog

The Career Practitioner's Toolkit on Violence Against Women

2009-10-30T10:20:00.004-04:00

"Many women, who return to employment or have to restart employment because they have left an abusive partner, will take any job even if it is exploitive and as a result, they often end up returning to that abusive situation." The need for employment and training services specifically for women may be most crucial when it comes to women who have experienced violence in their personal lives.The

ACTEW Members Meeting: Preparing for Change

2009-10-21T14:29:00.003-04:00

To provide a report on the October meeting of the Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG), ACTEW hosted a members meeting on October 19. The conference call format allowed agencies from across the province to participate equally. Service providers from various regions represented 15 agencies currently funded by Ministry of Training Colleges and Universities (MTCU).While all of the information in

October SDAG: Response to September SDAG Letter

2009-10-20T09:49:00.004-04:00

No big announcements were made at the teleconference meeting of the Service Advisory Delivery Group (SDAG) with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities on October 19, 2009. The meeting was an opportunity for Laurie LeBlanc to respond to issues raised in the letter SDAG sent to the new Assistant Deputy Minister in early September as well as a chance to discuss changes to the Second

ACTEW Members Meeting, Oct. 19

2009-10-15T11:00:00.002-04:00

ACTEW invites members to a teleconference meeting on Monday October 19 from 4:00 to 5:00 pm.This meeting will include a report on the Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) meeting with MTCU that will take place earlier the same day. The ACTEW meeting will focus on Employment Ontario issues particular to agencies that provide employment and training services for women.The SDAG meets with MTCU

MTCU Update on Second Career and OSEB

2009-10-13T16:59:00.005-04:00

Due to very high numbers of applicants, MTCU has officially limited access to popular training programs.MTCU announced on October 7 that it has reduced the number of people served in the future by Second Career Strategy. Applications for January will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis. New assessment criteria for applications are being implemented.As well, applications to the Ontario

MTCU Focuses on Second Career Strategy

2009-09-29T11:18:00.006-04:00

While there is still no official word on the implementation of the Employment Ontario, MTCU distributed a letter last week on its popular retraining program. Ten-thousand people entered college programs this September thanks to Second Career Strategy. However, MTCU reports that this rate is not sustainable. A letter from ADM, Laurie LeBlanc, to Employment Ontario service deliverers warns that

The Downward Trend: EI Training for Women in Ontario

2009-09-22T10:12:00.003-04:00

Ten percent less women are receiving EI training then five years ago, ACTEW has learned from a review of EI data for the province.It's not news that women are less likely to eligible for EI. The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives reported in 2007 that only 32% of women were eligible for EI compared to the national average of 36%. In Ontario, there are, on average, three men receiving regular

TD Economics: Training is Transformative Policy

2009-09-18T12:30:00.001-04:00

The August 24/09 Special Report of TD Economics calls for "a 'transformative' response" to the recession that focuses on investing in workers, especially those that are marginalized.In a speech to Queen's University School of Policy Studies, Don Drummond, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist for TD Bank Financial Group, urges Canada to "place social policy as a centerpiece of strategies to

Training for the Employed: Marginalized Female Workers Miss Out

2009-09-16T11:36:00.002-04:00

Barriers to Training Access, a new study from Statistics Canada reports that women, especially those in vulnerable working situations, are less likely to be trained by their employers than men.Authors G. B. Cooke, I. U. Zeytinoglu and J. Chowhan used data from the 2003 and 2005 Workplace and Employee Survey (WES). As well as exploring employer-supported training, they also looked at which workers

SDAG Letter to MTCU

2009-09-11T10:07:00.004-04:00

As a follow-up to the August meeting and to highlight issues of high priority to our members, the Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) has written a letter to Laurie LeBlanc, the new MTCU Assistant Deputy Minister.The letter was sent via email to Laurie on September 4. On September 9, SDAG was contacted for clarification on items raised in the letter as staff prepared briefing notes for the

August SDAG: The Implementation of Employment Ontario

2009-08-18T16:37:00.003-04:00

The rollout of Employment Service implementation is very likely to begin this fall, according to new MTCU ADM, Laurie LeBlanc. This and other announcements were delivered at the August 18 meeting of the Service Advisory Delivery Group and MTCU.Employment Service ImplementationThe implementation will likely occur before the November 18 SDAG meeting. There will be a six-month transition as agencies

A Sector Looking for Answers: Women-Specific Services, Timing of Implementation, and the Transition Process

2009-08-17T16:11:00.003-04:00

On August 11 and 13, ACTEW conducted teleconference focus groups with employment and training agencies to explore the impact of Employment Ontario on their service delivery and women clients. Participants from each region of the province represented 13 agencies currently funded under Employment Ontario.Five participants work in women-only agencies, although all other participants recognize the

An Opportunity to Evaluate the LMDA Implementation

2009-08-13T16:51:00.004-04:00

If you or your organization participated in an intervention in the early stage of the LMDA implementation, you are encouraged to participate in an evaluation. This is an opportunity to provide MTCU with feedback on the implementation that has lead to Employment Ontario, including successful activities and areas for improvement.Howard Green, Service Canada, and Laurie LeBlanc, MTCU, have notified

Women's Economic Security in Sudbury and South-West Ontario

2009-08-07T18:16:00.007-04:00

Two recent reports uncover economic issues for women in Ontario communities. High levels of unemployment among newcomer women"Exploring Newcomer Settlement and Integration Supports in Brantford, and Brant-Haldimand-Norfolk Counties" is a community-based participatory research report by Bharati Sethi in collaboration with the ISTEP (Immigrant Settlement Transition Employment and Partnership)

Focus Group on Employment Ontario

2009-08-04T12:17:00.001-04:00

ACTEW invites our members to a teleconference focus group on Employment Ontario and the role ACTEW can play.Please consider joining us for a 1-hour teleconference meeting:Tuesday August 11 at 11:00 a.m. ESTORThursday August 13 at 10:00 a.m. ESTWhat questions do you have about EO and its implementation? If ACTEW can't answer your questions, we will seek answers at the next Service Delivery

Recession Illustrates Variations Among Groups of Workers

2009-07-30T05:12:00.003-04:00

As data on the recession is collected, trends in labour market attachment among worker populations are becoming evident:women aged 55 and older are experiencing employment gains and are the only group that has added to their numbers since the start of the recession youth have the highest unemployment rate in 11 years; 15 to 24 year olds have an unemployment rate of 15.9 as of June 2009, 71% of

The State of the Sector: Challenges for Women's Economic Security in Ontario

2009-07-27T16:59:00.006-04:00

During the current "he-cession" women thus far are less likely to be unemployed than men. But there is no indication that they will be more economically secure and suitably supported by services than men when this downturn ends.Five informants, representing leading employment organizations from across the province, discussed the current state of women's economic security with ACTEW. Even as

Policy Recommendations on Temporary Work from Maytree

2009-07-27T15:13:00.001-04:00

Current immigration policies represent short-term fixes that will not serve Canada well in the future, states a new report by Naomi Alboim for the Maytree Foundation. In 2008, 247,202 permanent residents entered Canada, a 5.7% decline, compared with 272,520 temporary entrants, a 37.6% increase. From the report:"Seasonal agricultural workers, live-in caregivers, and low-skilled general workers are

Service Delivery Advisory Group - August Meeting

2009-07-23T17:31:00.004-04:00

The next meeting of the Employment Ontario Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) is Tuesday August 18.ACTEW members are invited to contact Paula Wansbrough at paula@actew.org with their concerns, ideas and observations regarding the implementation of Employment Ontario prior to the meeting.Watch this blog for a report on the August

SDAG Teleconference Meeting, May 28, 2009

2009-06-23T09:45:00.008-04:00

Issues discussed at this meeting included the role of specific client groups in MTCU's proposed service delivery model for EO, the EO funding model, a call from the Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) for MTCU to update employment agencies, and MTCU's overview of the provincial budget.A General Update:By early 2009 MTCU had hoped to announce the results of the October 2008 survey of service

Now You're Working for Free

2008-09-18T15:12:00.003-04:00

Mary Cornish and Fay Faraday remind us that from today, September 17, to the end of the year, women are working for free. We are 71% of the way through the year, and a woman makes 71 cents to every dollar a man in equal work makes.Read their article on gender-based pay discrimination in the Toronto Star:http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/500415See ACTEW's resource, Women in the Canadian

August Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) Meeting

2008-09-03T12:17:00.002-04:00

The Service Delivery Advisory Group met with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities on Aug. 28. The Employment Service Performance Management System presented by MTCU sets out the "service quality dimensions of success" which weigh effectiveness and customer service heavily against efficiency/funded activity. The agency's capacity and contractual compliance are understood to be the

Better Off in a Shelter? A Year of Homelessness and Housing for Immigrant, Non-Status, and Canadian-born Mothers

2008-07-25T10:36:00.004-04:00

On July 24, ACTEW's Pamela Seto attended the launch of a new report on housing issues for mothers living in Canada. A lunch and learn based on the report took place at the YWCA Woodlawn site in Toronto. The panelists included the authors -- Emily Paradis, Sylvia Novac, Monica Sarty, and David Hulchanski – as well as women from the study and social service practitioners. There is a general

Advancing Referral Processes for Women and Youth

2008-07-21T15:33:00.004-04:00

"It is so important to help individuals navigate the system because so many get lost and say, I have been passed on to 12 different agencies already and who else am I supposed to talk to?"ACTEW and the Ontario Association of Youth Employment Centres (OAYEC) release their latest study: Advancing Referral Processes. Twenty-nine employment referral practitioners working in agencies serving women and

Important Information from June/July Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) Meetings

2008-07-08T17:21:00.004-04:00

Paula Wansbrough attended the Service Delivery Advisory Group (SDAG) in-person meeting on June 19 and the continuation of this meeting in conference calls on July 4 and 10. A teleconference meeting of the SDAG community members only was also held on July 9. According to MTCU, there will be slide decks and other information on the issues outlined below on the EOPG web site in the coming