Mike W. Bryant
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Apr 19/02) - Education, Culture, and Employment launched its brand new online job search Web site Tuesday.

Jobsnorth.ca serves both employers and job seekers, with resumes and job listings covering every community in the NWT.

"It's pretty interesting. It kind of gives you an insight on whatever it is people are looking for," said Earl Purocher, a Hay River resident who came to ECE's official launch at the Explorer Hotel's Katimavik room more out of curiosity than out of the need to find a job.

Nonetheless, he said he was impressed at how easy the new system is to use.

"I'm really not too computer friendly, but I'll figure it out," said Purocher.

Mayor Gord Van Tighem, who also attended the launch, was uncertain whether the city would use the site if it needed to fill a senior management position, but felt overall the site will prove invaluable to most Northerners.

"This would be a way of promoting home-grown talent," said Van Tighem.

The site provides a list available jobs in the NWT, resumes, and links to college, apprenticeship and training programs.

The site will even allow a person to write a resume online, and print it out ready-made. One bonus, noted by ECE Minister Jake Ootes, is that the site is relatively inexpensive to run.

The start-up cost was a modest $80,000, and its upkeep will be done internally, at no extra cost, by ECE staff.

The site was developed by an outside contractor from Calgary, Rare Method.

As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 105 job seekers, 11 resumes, 44 registered employers and 15 jobs posted on the site.

Ootes said he expects the numbers to rise as more people become aware of it.

"I think we'll see this site grow very rapidly as individuals grow more knowledgeable," said Ootes.

"I think you'll see, with all the activity in the NWT, employers were looking for a method to contact employees, and this allows them to match up with the resumes they are looking for."

There are currently several job-find services available in the NWT, including the online federal job bank, Hire-a-Student, and private workboot.ca, but Ootes said they will compliment the new system.

"Are there other Web sites out there? Sure," said Ootes. "There's a crying need for these services. Many of them (job seekers) can't afford to pay for this."

One problem Ootes acknowledged, however, was that the site is open for non-NWT residents who are seeking jobs, and want to post resumes online. He said his preference is help Northerners find jobs first, before helping others.

"That's an area I'm personally concerned with," said Ootes. "We have to have some method to limit and screen that."