National Adult Literacy Database

The aim of this survey is to gather a broad base of information about adult learners in Canada. Intended for anyone who has taken an adult learning course over the past year, the survey closes at the end of Adult Learners' Week April 6-14.

The Newfoundland and Labrador government is planning to privatize part of the College of the North Atlantic's curriculum. As outlined in the provincial budget, the college will lose its Adult Basic Education program. The program is currently offered at 12 campuses across the province.

Literacy and lifelong learning are important tools that give Canadians the skills necessary to understand how to read, communicate with others and engage fully and confidently in all areas of life. One of the goals of Adult Learners’ Week is to promote and facilitate easier access to these opportunities.

Canada's system of education and skills remains one of the best in the world, but it needs to do much better at matching what Canadians learn to evolving labour market needs. Canada ranks second only to Finland among 16 developed countries in The Conference Board of Canada's Education and Skills report card.

"Newfoundland and Labrador is facing very real challenges related to our population and demographics in the coming years. In fact by 2020 we will need 70,000 skilled people to ensure we can take maximum advantage of the economic opportunities before us. Through our recently announced Population Growth Strategy, we will build on the work of the Office of Immigration and Multiculturalism and keep attracting new Canadians as part of our plan to address these challenges." -- Joan Shea, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills

The survey provides LES workers with a unique opportunity to speak about their own experience and reality as a member of that workforce. It is part of a larger study that will allow CLLN to provide a picture of the demographics of Literacy and Essential Skills practitioners as well as what kinds of work they do, where they do it and how they do it.

Look at any community college application list, and more often than not, you’ll find a sizable contingent of university graduates. The thought that a university degree is the ticket to instant career success is creating a backlash in Canada.

Canada Post has honoured the efforts of 24 deserving people from across the country with the Aboriginal Education Incentive Awards. The Awards, which were launched in 2004, acknowledge the hard work and drive required to continue education following an absence from formal schooling.

On March 6, Bay Street's sharpest minds will compete against one another to raise money for Frontier College, Canada's original literacy organization. Frontier College President Sherry Campbell is inspired by the continued growth of the Scrabble Corporate Challenge, now in its ninth year. "It's a wonderful reminder of the value that the corporate community places on literacy," she said.

The Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada has announced a new retirement solution called "Pension in a Box," designed to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) offer their employees a workplace retirement plan that answers their needs. Pension in a Box is intended to help the millions of Canadians who work for an SME to save for the future, and it will also help SMEs in terms of employee retention and satisfaction.

The Talent Group Canada has been relocating talented, skilled workers, such as Class 1 & 3 drivers, Engineers, Welders, Heavy Duty Mechanics, and Framers from Ontario to positions with employers throughout Western Canada with great results for both the employer and new employee. Here are tips for organizations that will assist in making any inter-provincial relocation a success.

Following two months of gains, employment in Canada decreased slightly in January (-22,000). A decline in the number of people looking for work pushed the unemployment rate down 0.1 percentage points to 7.0%.

In honour of Queen Elizabeth’s 60-year reign as the British Monarch, 30 individuals have been selected to receive a Diamond Jubilee Medal for their contribution to improving literacy and skills levels of adult Canadians.

Employers can now apply for Canada Summer Jobs funding which will create thousands of job opportunities for students across the country, said Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development. Funding is available to not-for-profit organizations, public-sector employers and small businesses.

With a total investment of over $11.9 million in 2012-13, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has helped 1,343 people find direct employment and expand their job skills through valuable work experience. The latest round of the Job Creation Partnerships program is providing employment for 243 people through 45 projects taking place in communities throughout the province.