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Premiers say no to Canada Job Grant Bob McLeod leads discussion on housing issues at Council of the Federation meeting in Ontario
Kassina Ryder
Northern News Services
Published Monday, July 29, 2013
NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, ONT
Northwest Territories Premier Bob McLeod said he is standing with other Canadian premiers against the proposed Canada Job Grant.
McLeod and other premiers met in Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ont. for the Council of the Federation meeting which ran from July 24 to 26.
The initiative would take federal funding provided to provinces and territories for current labour market agreement programs and instead provide up to $5,000 for each worker. Provinces and territories, as well as employers, would each be responsible for $5,000, bringing total funding to $15,000 per person.
In a joint statement released last week, premiers condemned the program.
"If implemented, the proposed Canada Job Grant would effectively remove all of the funding for labour market agreement programming," the release stated. "It would require provinces and territories to find more than $600 million in additional funding to maintain current labour market training programs for vulnerable people as well as funding for cost-matching of federal programs. Furthermore, it is unclear if employers, particularly small businesses, will participate."
McLeod said funding for skills training in the NWT is vital to economic growth.
"We have funding agreements whereby we work with industry, labour and aboriginal governments to identify training opportunities for aboriginal people and for people that are having difficulty finding jobs and training them to get employment," he told News/North on July 25.
McLeod said he and other premiers are requesting the Forum of Labour Market Ministers - made up of provincial and territorial ministers responsible for labour market issues as well as the federal minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada - to meet and discuss the program.
Premiers were also expected to review the draft Canadian Energy Strategy during the meeting.
McLeod said the NWT will back the interim strategy, which was expected to be released on July 26.
"It's something that we supported, we were pushing for," he said.
McLeod said he was also scheduled to discuss housing as meetings continued on July 26.
"I'm the lead on that," he said.
The federation, established in 2003, is made up of all 13 premiers of Canada.
The meetings allow the leaders of the country to work together on issues affecting Canadians.
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