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Workforce Diversity Edmonton

Workforce Diversity Edmonton (WDE)

Creating and enabling opportunities for our members to have the labour supply needed to meet current demand and anticipated growth


2013 Upcoming Events:

June 5th -- Chamber addressing labour shortage solutions: 'Bringing Facts To The Surface'
        A 90 minute session at World Trade Centre Edmonton on how employers can recruit and retain people of diversity and the many community resources available to address their labour shortages. Register Here

June 11th -- Canada Job Grant puts Sills Training in Employers' Hands! *Save the Date*
        By 2015 the Canada Job Grant will re-orient Canada/Alberta labour market development transfers by 'taking skills-training choices out of the hands of government and (placing it in) the hands of employers and Canadians who want to work’. The grant will provide $15,000 (or more) per person with up to $5K from the federal government and matching 'contributions' from the province and employer.

Join the Chamber’s Workforce Development Task Force June 11 at the World Trade Centre Edmonton to ensure the new Canada Job Grant meets your labour market needs. For more information and to register, contact Jason Leslie, WDE coordinator at (780) 409-2142 or jleslie@edmontonchamber.com

June 18th -- Aboriginal Cross Cultural Workshop 
          Enhance your relationships with Aboriginal people by gaining an understanding of beliefs, values, and communication styles and how they  may differ from your own, while gaining the knowledge and strategies to collaborate with this growing workforce. Register Here

Employer – Youth Forums (EYF’s)  

  • Hire employment ready youth, and meet your employment needs!
  • Connect with sustainable sources of job-seeking youth
  • Share your business needs and skill requirements with youth- serving organizations who are building our workforce
  • Grow a workforce that reflects your organizational requirements
  • Grow and share employment best practices to recruit and retain diverse youth in the Edmonton area
  • Be an Edmonton business leader!

 Did you know?  

  • By 2020, over 400,000 young Aboriginal people will enter the workforce?[i]
  • Full inclusion of Aboriginal peoples in the economy could
    • Increase Canada’s GDP by $401 billion
    • Increase tax revenue by $39 billion
    • Reduce government expenditures by $77 billion over the next 20 year period?[ii]
  • Disability costs can be up to 12% of a business’s overall payroll cost, and mental health claims are the fastest growing category of all disability costs?[iii]

Is your business building conditions for sustainable success?

WDE in 2013:

  • Aboriginal Cross Cultural Workshop for Employers (Jan 15th)
  • Partnered with Alberta Human Rights Commission on a forum for accommodating mental illness in the workplace (Jan 30th )
  • EYF (Mar 8th)
  • Expanding EYF initiative for 2013 – 2014
  • Aboriginal Cross Cultural workshop (April 17)

Contact: Jason Leslie

JLeslie@edmontonchamber.com 780.409.2142

[i] 8th Annual Champions’ Meeting Discussion Paper “Aboriginal Labour Market Strategies: Increasing Return and Productivity.” Aboriginal Human Resource Council.

[ii] Statistics Canada. “Aboriginal Peoples in Canada in 2006: Inuit, Metis, and First Nations.” Catalogue no. 97-558-XIE

[iii] Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). http://www.cmha.ca/mental_health/information-for-employers-2/

 
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DID YOU KNOW?

On February 27 of 1889, the Edmonton Board of Trade was established.
In 1899, the board of trade acquired a 55-acre parcel of land, which became the site of the city’s new public park and racetrack.
In June 1915, the Edmonton Board of Trade raised $8,098 for the purchase of armaments for the 49th and 51st Battalions.
In 1928 the Edmonton Board of Trade was reconstituted as the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce.
In November of 1933, the chamber helped to promote recovery by advocating public works projects such as the Jasper and Yellowhead Highways.
In 1942, the chamber created an advertising bureau to help Edmonton merchants adjust to the anticipated decline in business during WWII.
In November 1946, the chamber formed the Better Business Division modeled after the Better Business Bureaus of Winnipeg and Vancouver.
In 1948 the chamber opened the first public tourism office, forerunner to Edmonton Tourism’s visitor centres.
1948 also saw the beginning of the chamber’s annual northern tours with its Friendship Train trip up the new Alaska Highway.
In January of 1978, the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce moved into the Sun Life Building at 99 Street and 101a Avenue.
In 1985, the chamber continued to aid the diversification of the Edmonton economy promoting the Edmonton Research Park.
On January 26, 2000, the chamber stepped into the 21st century with edmontonchamber.com.
On July 8, 2004 the chamber moved to its current location on the 7th floor of the nearby World Trade Centre Edmonton.
 
Copyright © 2011 Edmonton Chamber of Commerce.  All rights reserved.
600-9990 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, AB T5J 1P7
Phone: (780) 426-4620 | Fax: (780) 424-7946 | info@edmontonchamber.com