National Adult Literacy Database

Joint initiatives among communities and businesses are helping to close the gap between the tremendous need for skilled workers in Canada’s North and the shortage of people with sufficient education and employment skills, according to a new report from The Conference Board of Canada’s Centre for the North.

TESL Canada and BC TEAL welcome proposals for presentations at the TESL Canada 2012 conference next October. As a major national forum with international reach, TESL Canada conferences are held on an 18-month cycle and offer an important opportunity for professionals to share their work with peers.

Recent research conducted by Ipsos Reid indicates the most important reason why Canadians would not relocate to another city is because they do not want to leave friends and family behind.

At the first of the Work and Learning Network’s 2011/2012 symposiums, John Servage drew on his 35 years of experience to present a rich case study which described how this troubled group of workers used employee-driven learning to turn their department around. John described how he and his staff broke the department into inquiry teams, and empowered them to change the way they worked together.

The disappointing Statistics Canada numbers are in stark contrast to economists’ expectations that 12,000 new jobs would be created in October, after 61,000 new positions in September. The loss of 32,000 jobs in the private sector in October was the third consecutive monthly decline in that category.

Highway 1 has been named "Saskatchewan's Highway of Heroes" as a permanent tribute to Canadian Forces personnel from Saskatchewan who have lost their lives in service to our country.

Wage earners will feel the pinch, as the bulk of jobs created will likely be low-paying, but more broadly the economy will suffer as the trend puts a damper on consumer spending, says Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist at CIBC World Markets.

Whether your own employment situation reeks of entry-level desperation or you’re simply looking to move up the ladder with a bigger pay cheque, the offer of a promotion can be enticing. There may, however, be just as many reasons to pass on a promotion as there are to accept.

The Office of Literacy and Essential Skills (OLES) will host a webinar on Thursday, November 3, from 12 to 1:30 p.m. Eastern time. The objectives of the presentation are to share good practices and lessons learned, as well as HRSDC tools and resources that may benefit Aboriginal agreement holders and other organizations, and advance literacy and essential skills.

Amid an uncertain economic climate, Canadian workers can expect average salary increases of 3.1 per cent in 2012, The Conference Board of Canada has revealed at its Compensation Outlook conference.

Career coach Karen Goins has advice for those out of work that could be followed by the employed as well. She says you should never stop looking for a job, even if you have one. You should always have your eyes open, always be asking around about other opportunities, and never accept that you're stuck in a job for life.

Small businesses are a key driver of Canada's economy, accounting for about 98 per cent of all business establishments in the country and about two-thirds of the private sector workforce.

The Build Your Career with Essential Skills website connects people with the tools and resources they need to be successful at work – including 50 profiles recently updated by HRSDC, online assessments and customized test result reports. It also features instant customized learning plans that link the learner to classroom-based upgrading in their local area and free online resources.

The working world presents its own catch-22 for many folks just starting out in the job hunt. Most employers prefer to hire candidates with experience but as many frustrated job-seekers will tell you, experience is hard to come by when no one’s willing to hire you without it.

"The Tri-Mentoring Program at Ryerson University is one of only two programs in Canada committed to integrating culturally and linguistically diverse students into a university and professional setting," says Kabir Abdurrahman, program coordinator.