Youth Employment Centre (YEC) and leading employers are connecting youth with opportunities

CALGARY; September 28, 2018 — The Youth Employment Centre (YEC) is offering an opportunity for young Calgarians, ages 16 to 24, to connect with leading employers today. The City of Calgary’s YEC, in partnership with the national coalition Opportunity For All Youth, is hosting local partner companies at the Atrium, Municipal Building. HMS Host, Starbucks, TELUS, The Source and Walmart will be welcoming over 200 youth and conducting pre-scheduled interviews.Calgary’s launch of the initiative is the second in the series to help achieve the coalition’s five-year goal of providing meaningful employment to 40,000 Canadian youth, with a focus on those who have experienced challenges in obtaining employment.

 “This is an excellent program to increase youth employment and help us to build a better economy where all Calgarians benefit,” says Mayor Naheed Nenshi. “Together, we are creating great opportunities for our young citizens so they can have valuable experiences that will help them in their future careers.”

Nearly one million young Canadians are not in school or gainfully employed, according to Statistics Canada. Of those, nearly 400,000 young people are actively seeking jobs and low-skilled youth are particularly challenged in the labour market.

“The Opportunity For All Youth coalition recognizes that corporations play a unique role in helping tackle this societal challenge, and that they must work together with community organizations and governments to achieve maximum social impact,” says Richard Derham, Lead Executive, Opportunity For All Youth. “We want to ensure that every young adult has the chance to join the workforce, pursue their ambitions, and improve our shared future.”YEC is open year-round and will continue to contribute to the national effort after today’s event, by preparing Calgary youth with building skills to enter the workforce.