Completed
Way Forward Commitment:
In February 2017, our Government announced the establishment of a new Workforce Innovation Centre at College of the North Atlantic’s Corner Brook campus. This Centre will support and fund labour market activities, research and projects that demonstrate innovation and identify methods to better assist individuals prepare for, find, return to or maintain sustainable employment.
Reflecting our Government’s commitment to diversify the economy through innovation, the Centre will partner with business, labour and community groups and agencies to foster and find innovative approaches to address local labour market needs and improve employment and training outcomes. An inaugural call for proposals will occur by June 30, 2017.
What We’ve Accomplished:
- The Workforce Innovation Centre was established at College of the North Atlantic February 2017.
- The Centre’s goal is to support research, testing, and sharing of ideas and models of innovation in workforce development that will positively impact employability, entrepreneurship, and attachment to the workforce In Newfoundland and Labrador.
- During 2017-18, the Workforce Innovation Centre issued it’s inaugural call for proposals and funded eight multiyear projects totaling over $3.1 million to support applied research projects that test innovative approaches to address labour market issues and improve employment outcomes.
- Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador (HNL) – $588,000 over three years to support rural Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who wish to transition to work in the tourism sector;
- Genesis Centre, Memorial University – $497,417 over three years to explore ways to increase entrepreneurship among women and immigrants in the technology sector;
- Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC) – $361,616 over two years to develop and deliver an innovative training model for entry-level occupations in the aquaculture industry;
- The Association of New Canadians (ANC) – $292,680 over 3 years to develop and implement a program connecting refugees to employment opportunities in the province’s agriculture sector, in partnership with Memorial University’s Grenfell Campus;
- Women in Resource Development Corporation (WRDC) – $230,650 over two years to evaluate the short and long term Impacts of WRDC’s Employment Assistance Services and Career Development Programming;
- Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC) – $129,220 over two years for Pathways to Work: Co-designing Improved Employment Pathways for Inuit Youth in Nunatsiavut;
- Collective Interchange Cooperative and Canadian Career Development Foundation – $314,732 over three years for Evidence for Community Employment Services: A Collaborative Regional Approach; and,
- College of the North Atlantic – $756,886 over three years for Alternate Admissions Academic Readiness Assessment Processes and Tools for Indigenous Peoples.
- In July 2018, the Workforce Innovation Centre issued a second call for proposals to spark ideas for research and innovation in workforce development and approved more than $2.27 million in funding for an additional six projects:
- Stella’s Circle – $687,269 to explore the use and impact of mobile technology in a work-based employment program for adults who face employment barriers;
- Eastern Health – $443,000 to undertake a pilot project to test approaches to improving mental health and safety through technology-based support;
- NL Forest Industry Association – $334,017 to explore knowledge-based production and use of biological resources to provide products, processes, and services across all sectors of the provincial economy;
- Laubach Literary Council – $287,131 to help rural Newfoundlanders and Labradorians acquire the skills to succeed in online learning;
- Women in Science, Engineering, Trades and Technology (WinSETT) – $280,851 to enhance the WinSETT Leadership Program in Newfoundland and Labrador; and,
- Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences – $238,932 to investigate the attitudes of employers in the province toward hiring newcomers, temporary foreign workers, and international students.
- In summer 2019, also stemming from the second call for proposals, the following additional six projects were announced for a total of $2.22 million:
- Community Education Network Southwestern NL – $248,535 to facilitate evidence-based research and analysis, and to disseminate resources and practical tools that encourage and support social enterprise growth in the Province aimed at addressing workforce challenges, supporting rural sustainability, encouraging small business enterprise, and building a stronger economic foundation for the future;
- Academy Canada – $227,211 to determine the soft skills gaps within the Province’s labour supply and to evaluate the impact of a specially designed soft skills development workshop series on the employability of its participants;
- Choices for Youth – $616,866 to analyze options for education, training and work; combining an employment first approach with social enterprise development; to gain a stronger understanding of how to improve economic and social conditions for marginalized youth and emerging adults in the Province;
- Corner Brook Status of Women Council – $74,525 to explore the conditions necessary for the success of a social enterprise in the Crestview area of Corner Brook;
- YMCA of Western Newfoundland – $824,493 to explore best practices in the delivery of employment programs, services and supports for at risk youth and young adults aged 15-40; and,
- St. John’s Board of Trade – $229,705 to explore barriers that currently exist for older workers that want to remain in the workforce, to examine their potential contribution to the labour market, to gain understanding of employer attitudes towards older workers and to develop recommendations to remove barriers and increase older worker participation in the workforce.
- Projects funded for the Association for New Canadians, Genesis Centre, and Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences support key priorities in The Way Forward on Immigration in Newfoundland and Labrador , which identifies action items on employment mentorship and leadership among immigrant women, the delivery of labour market integration programming for refugees, and identification of solutions to mitigate barriers to employment for newcomers, temporary foreign workers, and international students.
News Releases
New Research Projects to Benefit Youth, Women, and Social Enterprise in Western Newfoundland
College of the North Atlantic to Host Province’s Workforce Innovation Centre
First Projects Announced for College of the North Atlantic’s Workforce Innovation Centre
New Projects through Workforce Innovation Centre to Support Rural Residents, Women, Newcomers