Posted: July 31, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
An overwhelming majority of Canadians (94 per cent) believe that small businesses play a critical role in the growth of the economy and almost nine-in-10 (88 per cent) view them as vital job creators, according to an RBC/Ipsos Reid survey.
Posted: July 19, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Workers affected by the Bowater closure in Queens County, Nova Scotia, are getting career specialists to help them train and find new employment.
Posted: July 19, 2012 |

Categories: Essential skills, Learning
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada has awarded $199,721 to support a partnership project that targets university students at risk for academic difficulties because of a history of unidentified reading difficulties. NALD is part of the project’s knowledge dissemination team.
Posted: July 18, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Consulting firm Towers Watson says it has found evidence that employers with a fully engaged workforce tend to have higher profit margins. The firm’s study covered some 32,000 employees, including 1,000 in Canada. It found that about two-thirds of the Canadian employees surveyed weren’t “fully engaged” in their work and felt frustrated by the level of support they receive.
Posted: July 17, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
A career coach says victims of workplace bullying can't be afraid to complain to the company or even to take legal action. You need to stand up for yourself, and you must do it immediately. You should begin by documenting the instances of the behaviour that you feel is bullying in as much detail as possible.
Posted: July 13, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Twenty-seven managers and supervisors from a dozen companies in Nova Scotia learned how to work more efficiently by communicating better with staff through jobsHere training delivered by the province. The 40-hour program was jointly organized with the Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium, a not-for-profit that helps member companies become more competitive, more profitable and better managed.
Posted: July 11, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Businesses that successfully hire and retain Aboriginal workers benefit in more ways than just finding qualified employees. Employing Aboriginal workers helps organizations build stronger connections and relationships within their local communities. Businesses become more diverse and inclusive when they tap into the talents of Aboriginal workers, and Aboriginal peoples who are successful in the workplace act as role models for others in their communities.
Posted: July 11, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
The third annual Essential Skills Day will take place September 21, 2012, to raise awareness of the nine essential skills as defined by the Government of Canada and the importance of training in the workplace.
Posted: July 10, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
The Globe and Mail newspaper conducted a survey of student readers, asking whether they thought their summer earnings would cover their expenses for the school year. Of more than 150 respondents, 87 per cent said they had found a summer job, and 13 per cent said they were unemployed.
Posted: July 9, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Business owners in Alberta (73.3) and Saskatchewan (72.5) have collectively been the most optimistic in Canada for 11 consecutive months, while entrepreneurs in Manitoba (65.9), New Brunswick (65.7) and British Columbia (65.6) are comfortably above the national average, and those in Newfoundland and Labrador (61.3) are close to average.
Posted: July 9, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
In June, employment was little changed for the second consecutive month and the unemployment rate edged down 0.1 percentage points to 7.2 per cent, as fewer people searched for work. Compared with 12 months earlier, employment increased 1.0 per cent or 181,000.
Posted: July 6, 2012 |

Categories: Essential skills, Learning
In times of economic uncertainty and ever-changing information technology, organizations – whether in the public domain or private sector – are often obligated to sit back, reflect and re-evaluate their activities and priorities. With this in mind, the National Adult Literacy Database (NALD) is adapting some of its services and setting a new course for the future.