Monday, March 31, 2008
Women Seek Training at Private Colleges
Women make up almost three-quarters of the students in private career colleges, according to, Survey of Canadian Career College Students, a new study by the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation.
Half of these students will or already rely on a Canada Student Loans or other government assistance to fund their education and have higher debt levels than public college students. The study also shows that compared with their peers at public colleges, private college students are less knowledgeable about various educational loan and grant options.
Download the report: Survey of Canadian Career College Students
http://www.millenniumscholarships.ca/images/Publications/080331_SCCCS_EN.pdf
"Compared to post-secondary students at public colleges, students pursuing post-secondary studies at privately operated career colleges tend to be older, with a mean age of 29, and have a greater reliance on government student financial aid. In addition, most of them (72 per cent) are women, and they are more likely to have dependents under 18 and less likely to have financial backing from family."Students within the private colleges fit into six main categories, which include new immigrants, women re-entering the workforce after a period of caregiving, and young people preparing to enter a college or university program.
Half of these students will or already rely on a Canada Student Loans or other government assistance to fund their education and have higher debt levels than public college students. The study also shows that compared with their peers at public colleges, private college students are less knowledgeable about various educational loan and grant options.
Download the report: Survey of Canadian Career College Students
http://www.millenniumscholarships.ca/images/Publications/080331_SCCCS_EN.pdf
Labels: Issues_and_Trends, Resources_and_Research
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Provincial Budget: The Skills to Jobs Action Plan
Increasing skills is a central focus of the new provincial budget. The Skills to Jobs Action Plan announced Tuesday will see $1.5 billion invested in training over the next three years. With 70% of new jobs in the coming decade requiring post-secondary education, the money is on formal school-based training.
However, the budget falls short in some key areas. The Wellesley Institute observes that there is almost no investment in housing. While a 2% increase in social assistance benefits is a hopeful start, it will barely keep pace with inflation. Most importantly to working women or women wanting to work, there is no mention child care, neither as an immediate investment or in a long-term commitment.
Read the budget.
See analysis of the 2008 Ontario budget on the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
- Most relevant to the community-based training sector is the Second Career Strategy. The program invests $560 million over the next three years in retraining 20,000 individuals laid off in the past 12 months in a second career. This is a fresh direction for training money, with little funding in recent decades for career changes. The new money will include grants of up to $28,000 or $30,000 to help cover the cost of tuition, living and transportation. A screening process that measures aptitude, goals and financial need will determine those eligible for the grants.
The focus of this initiative appears to be on those in the manufacturing industry who have lost jobs. The Toronto Star reported 77,000 lost jobs in the province’s manufacturing sector from 2001 to 2006. Nationally, 18,300 sewing machine operators (92% of which are female), 6,800 metal fabricators, and 6,100 mechanical assemblers and inspectors lost their jobs during this period, with Ontario as the hardest hit province.
The Star reports that the Second Career Strategy is to "be up and running by June 1 through existing employment counselling services". While the focus is on retraining laid off workers and those with long-term goals, the vague terminology of "unemployed workers" may be useful to non-profits serving more marginalized individuals. The grants may also be helpful to single mothers as Finance Minister Dwight Duncan is reported as saying, "If a sole breadwinner wants to go back (to school) there will be additional help that isn't available under existing programs."
The budget also aims to expand and improve apprenticeships with $75 million over the next three years to increase apprenticeships, to meet a goal of 32,500 new trainees annually by 2011, plus another $45 million for apprenticeship training equipment. While women have been entering apprenticeships in slowly increasing numbers, they remain in traditional and low-paying occupations like child care and hairdressing. Encouraging women to enter non-traditional occupations would meet labour shortages.
Much of the money is for universities and colleges. There is extensive funding of $970 million over three years for educational institutions, mainly universities and colleges, but also "skills training centres and facilities" under the Strategic Skills Training Capital Investments program. New grants will improve access to education with $385 million for books and computers and $27 million to alleviate travel expenses of students in remote areas.
However, the budget falls short in some key areas. The Wellesley Institute observes that there is almost no investment in housing. While a 2% increase in social assistance benefits is a hopeful start, it will barely keep pace with inflation. Most importantly to working women or women wanting to work, there is no mention child care, neither as an immediate investment or in a long-term commitment.
Read the budget.
See analysis of the 2008 Ontario budget on the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
Labels: Issues_and_Trends, Meetings_and_Events
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
The Impact of Federal Funding Changes on Training and Employment Services: Report to Be Released
Join ACTEW on Wednesday, April 2, as the Community Social Planning Council of Toronto hosts the release of a collaborative report analyzing the effects of 2004 changes to the HRSDC Call for Proposals process.
The report documents the costs of the funding change to organizations, government, and clients, and provides recommendations for improving the funding relationship between government and non-profit organizations. The sudden change threatened the existence of a number of employment and training organizations and interrupted service for many clients.
The report was developed by ACTEW in collaboration with the Community Social Planning Council of Toronto, ONESTEP (Ontario Network of Employment and Skills Training Programs), OCASI (Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants), OAYEC (Ontario Association of Youth Employment Centres) and TNC (Toronto Neighbourhood Centres), with funding support from the United Way of Greater Toronto Social Research Initiative.
The event will take place in Toronto. To attend, please contact Mary at 416-351-0095 x 251 or mmary@cspc.toronto.on.ca. For more information, contact Alissa Von Bargen, Community Social Planning Council of Toronto Communications Officer at 416-351-0095 x 214, or avonbargen@cspc.toronto.on.ca.
The report documents the costs of the funding change to organizations, government, and clients, and provides recommendations for improving the funding relationship between government and non-profit organizations. The sudden change threatened the existence of a number of employment and training organizations and interrupted service for many clients.
The report was developed by ACTEW in collaboration with the Community Social Planning Council of Toronto, ONESTEP (Ontario Network of Employment and Skills Training Programs), OCASI (Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants), OAYEC (Ontario Association of Youth Employment Centres) and TNC (Toronto Neighbourhood Centres), with funding support from the United Way of Greater Toronto Social Research Initiative.
The event will take place in Toronto. To attend, please contact Mary at 416-351-0095 x 251 or mmary@cspc.toronto.on.ca. For more information, contact Alissa Von Bargen, Community Social Planning Council of Toronto Communications Officer at 416-351-0095 x 214, or avonbargen@cspc.toronto.on.ca.
Labels: ACTEW_Activities, Meetings_and_Events, Resources_and_Research
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Addressing Barriers for Marginalized Immigrants and Refugees
On February 20th, ACTEW joined workers, clients and volunteers of community agencies serving immigrants and refugees in Toronto at a forum designed and held by the Advisory Committee of Access to Services for Socially Marginalized Immigrants and Refugees with the support of St. Christopher House. The event objectives were to name the issues for marginalized immigrants and refugees, particularly related to accessibility of services, and to bridge the work done by various service-providers to address these issues.
Eight recommendations resulting from the forum are now available, the foremost of which is to develop a coalition to "address poverty, racial discrimination, oppressive practices, systemic barriers and access to services barriers" for marginalized immigrants and refugees. Other recommendations included involving government to develop helpful policy and coordinate services, mapping service access points for targeted groups, collaborations between established agencies and new organizations, strategic funding approaches and settlement sector information sharing.
This initiative is important to employment and training agencies serving newcomers.
Agencies wanting to learn more about the Access to Services for Socially Marginalized Immigrants and Refugees recommendations and to participate in future meetings for this initiative are invited to contact Mahassen Mahmoud at mahassenma@stchristhouse.org.
Eight recommendations resulting from the forum are now available, the foremost of which is to develop a coalition to "address poverty, racial discrimination, oppressive practices, systemic barriers and access to services barriers" for marginalized immigrants and refugees. Other recommendations included involving government to develop helpful policy and coordinate services, mapping service access points for targeted groups, collaborations between established agencies and new organizations, strategic funding approaches and settlement sector information sharing.
This initiative is important to employment and training agencies serving newcomers.
- Newer immigrants of both sexes are facing greater difficulties getting work and securing stable, well-paying positions than previous generations and unemployment rates among ethno-racial groups vary dramatically, from as high as 35% to as low as 2.5%.
Immigrant women identify access to suitable employment as a key issue in their lives: many are underemployed and most work in field other than that in which they are trained.
The vast majority of home-workers and contract shop employees in Canada's garment industry are immigrant women of colour. This sector is unregulated with very low pay, irregular work, and no option for benefits.
Domestic workers are almost exclusively immigrant women. Often living in the homes of their employers, they are particularly vulnerable to economic exploitation and human rights abuses.
Agencies wanting to learn more about the Access to Services for Socially Marginalized Immigrants and Refugees recommendations and to participate in future meetings for this initiative are invited to contact Mahassen Mahmoud at mahassenma@stchristhouse.org.
Labels: Issues_and_Trends, Meetings_and_Events
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Communities Working Together to End Violence Against Women
ACTEW's Trish McNamara reports on the recent conference hosted by the Ontario Women's Directorate. Trish is Program Manager for Supporting Survivors/Supporting Employment, professional development workshops for employment practitioners that serve survivors of intimate partner abuse.
Here's an update on the Ontario Women's Directorate Provincial Conference, "Communities Working Together to End Violence Against Women" that I attended from February 25 to 27th in Kitchener.
First, I would like to say this was an excellent opportunity to network with many women’s organizations and spread the word about ACTEW and the many projects that we have on the go.
The Honourable Deb Matthews, Minister Responsible for Women's Issues opened the conference and had not planned on attending the entire conference but ended up staying. Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada was a keynote speaker as well on Tuesday with many inspiring words and stories. Her true commitment to helping end violence is notable. During our meal breaks there were many other excellent keynote speakers who shared their insights and stories.
I attended many of the poster displays and have some amazing resources to add to ACTEW's resource library, which I will bring with me to our March 14th meeting.
As well, I attended the following workshops:
I was able to connect with many delegates from health units, victim services, regional police, sexual assault centres and social services departments to name just a few of the sectors represented.
Here's an update on the Ontario Women's Directorate Provincial Conference, "Communities Working Together to End Violence Against Women" that I attended from February 25 to 27th in Kitchener.
First, I would like to say this was an excellent opportunity to network with many women’s organizations and spread the word about ACTEW and the many projects that we have on the go.
The Honourable Deb Matthews, Minister Responsible for Women's Issues opened the conference and had not planned on attending the entire conference but ended up staying. Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada was a keynote speaker as well on Tuesday with many inspiring words and stories. Her true commitment to helping end violence is notable. During our meal breaks there were many other excellent keynote speakers who shared their insights and stories.
I attended many of the poster displays and have some amazing resources to add to ACTEW's resource library, which I will bring with me to our March 14th meeting.
As well, I attended the following workshops:
- Abused Women Who Don’t Seek Help: Their Perceptions, Experiences and Needs
Creating Rural Rainbow Connections – with Pride – in Renfrew County
After “She Leaves”
Meaningful Messaging for Family Violence Prevention: Lessons from working with ethno-linguistic and immigrant communities in Ontario
Danger Assessment
I was able to connect with many delegates from health units, victim services, regional police, sexual assault centres and social services departments to name just a few of the sectors represented.
Labels: ACTEW_Activities, Issues_and_Trends, Meetings_and_Events
Friday, March 07, 2008
Valuing Women's Work, "Once and For All"
Our fact sheet on Canadian Women's Labour Patterns reveals that while women accounted for 70% of the employment increases in Canada in 2007, a woman still earns only 70% of what a man will in work of equal value. Two recently launched campaigns and a new report challenge this stubborn and glaring economic imbalance in Canadian society.
The Canadian Labour Congress has launched "Equality: Once and For All", a year long campaign for women's economic equality. On International Women's Day, 30 meetings on work-related issues for women will take place in locations across the country. CLC has also produced a report and fact sheets on wage inequity, the gender pay, employment insurance, pensions, the role of unions and child care.
"It's Time for Public Child Care" is another campaign for working women and their families. In Ontario there are regularted child care spaces for only 10% of the children under 12. Driven by the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care and the Ontario Federation of Labour, this campaign includes meetings throughout the province on the desperate need for quality child care and against the privatization of such care by the international corporation that is presently moving into the province. Not only does this big box child care offer poor care for children, "In Australia the biggest child care chain, ABC Learning Centres, caps wages at 50% of costs fueling record profits for its shareholders from the low wages of their staff."
Child care is one of the most prevalent employment categories for women in Canada, according to a release from Statistics Canada this week, yet it is also one of the most poorly paid. The annual income for these workers half that of the national income average. Salaries for child care centre staff range from $12,500 to $29,000 per year, providers outside centres have even lower remuneration, and child care providers in Canada's Live-In Caregiver Program, due to immigration regulations, are very vulnerable to unfair pay and abuse from their employers.(See our fact sheet on child care for more information.)
A report released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives urges the Province of Ontario to fulfill its obligation to child care providers and other public sector workers who are still owed pay equity payments. Twenty years ago, Ontario's Pay Equity Act made pay discrimination illegal, and yet, as Mary Cornish states in "Putting fairness back into women’s pay: The case for Pay Equity in Ontario":
The Canadian Labour Congress has launched "Equality: Once and For All", a year long campaign for women's economic equality. On International Women's Day, 30 meetings on work-related issues for women will take place in locations across the country. CLC has also produced a report and fact sheets on wage inequity, the gender pay, employment insurance, pensions, the role of unions and child care.
"It's Time for Public Child Care" is another campaign for working women and their families. In Ontario there are regularted child care spaces for only 10% of the children under 12. Driven by the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care and the Ontario Federation of Labour, this campaign includes meetings throughout the province on the desperate need for quality child care and against the privatization of such care by the international corporation that is presently moving into the province. Not only does this big box child care offer poor care for children, "In Australia the biggest child care chain, ABC Learning Centres, caps wages at 50% of costs fueling record profits for its shareholders from the low wages of their staff."
Child care is one of the most prevalent employment categories for women in Canada, according to a release from Statistics Canada this week, yet it is also one of the most poorly paid. The annual income for these workers half that of the national income average. Salaries for child care centre staff range from $12,500 to $29,000 per year, providers outside centres have even lower remuneration, and child care providers in Canada's Live-In Caregiver Program, due to immigration regulations, are very vulnerable to unfair pay and abuse from their employers.(See our fact sheet on child care for more information.)
A report released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives urges the Province of Ontario to fulfill its obligation to child care providers and other public sector workers who are still owed pay equity payments. Twenty years ago, Ontario's Pay Equity Act made pay discrimination illegal, and yet, as Mary Cornish states in "Putting fairness back into women’s pay: The case for Pay Equity in Ontario":
the government is failing to fully fund the pay equity adjustments owing to women in the public and broader public sector. In addition, the Pay Equity Commission and Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal, which enforce the Act, are seriously underfunded.$78.1 million is currently owing to women in the public sector. Furthermore, Cornish also points out that women in the private sector are much more vulnerable, an issue that snowballs as more government services become privatized, but little is done to prevent or penalize gender-based wage discrimination.
Labels: Meetings_and_Events, Resources_and_Research
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Canada's Statement on Women's Equality to the UNCSW
Non-governmental organizations have an important position in the United Nations, ACTEW learned when attending the Consultation Day hosted by the NGO Committee on the Status of Women on February 24. Their role is to monitor and evaluate the execution of governmental commitments made in statements to the UN.
On Thursday February 28, the Government of Canada presented its statement to at the 52nd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women. Canada's statement about its commitment to women's equality is available on the web site of the Mission of Canada to the UN.
Representatives from Canadian NGOs attending the UNCSW released a response to the statement, comparing Canada's proclamations to last week's federal budget. You can read their commentary on the web sites of Canadian Business or CUPE.
On Thursday February 28, the Government of Canada presented its statement to at the 52nd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women. Canada's statement about its commitment to women's equality is available on the web site of the Mission of Canada to the UN.
Representatives from Canadian NGOs attending the UNCSW released a response to the statement, comparing Canada's proclamations to last week's federal budget. You can read their commentary on the web sites of Canadian Business or CUPE.
Labels: Issues_and_Trends, Meetings_and_Events
