Biz groups pledge to help Indigenous youth begin careers

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This article was published 03/11/2018 (2554 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Employment is key to helping reduce poverty among Indigenous youth, and it’s where the Winnipeg Poverty Reduction Council is doing groundbreaking work with a consortium of 12 employers in the city.

The council, a United Way initiative, created the employer consortium as part of its TRC 92: Youth Employment action plan. Inspired by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s call to action No. 92, it asks the corporate sector to ensure equitable access to job opportunities to Indigenous youth and educate staff on the history of Indigenous Peoples.

The project is bringing together the local business community, organizations training Indigenous youth for the workforce and Indigenous youth seeking jobs, as well as encouraging education in workplaces on Indigenous Peoples’ history in Canada.

“The goal is to connect the employers with these community agencies and the youth that they’re working with, to build connections and relationships that will lead to not only greater understanding of the realities for the youth as they’re seeking to enter the job market, but also some opportunities for employment,” executive director Pam Sveinson said.

Still in its first year, the action plan aims to eventually have Indigenous youth workers placed in the employer consortium’s workplaces.

“When we look at it through a poverty lens at the (council), we really felt that those that had the biggest bridge to get across were the Indigenous youth. It’s going to take collaboration, breaking down barriers and a relationship and understanding on both sides,” said Dave Angus, the employer consortium’s lead and president of the Johnston Group.

“What I’m getting a sense of in the corporate community is there is a very strong will to act… It’s these companies actually putting a stake in the ground and saying, ‘We’re going to be an employer of choice for the Indigenous community and particularly for Indigenous youth.’”

Kevin Lamoureux, the University of Winnipeg associate vice-president of Indigenous affairs, who consults with the council, said the project is providing important opportunities to engage Indigenous youth and to educate the business leaders on the importance of reconciliation and cultural awareness.

“This is good for everybody, and the United Way is well aware of this,” Lamoureux said. “If we are able to create equity, it adds to our (gross domestic product), it closes the employment gap, it provides an opportunity for a broader employee base to engage with non-traditional customers and clientele.

“This is really an opportunity for business to really flourish in partnership with First Nations people.”

Nicole Stewart of Payworks, one of the employer consortium members, said being part of the project is allowing the company to educate its workplace and be a more welcoming space for Indigenous youth workers.

“Being part of the consortium is just uber valuable. It’s something that I can do and pay it forward to my workplace and share what I’m learning,” said Stewart, director of human resources for Payworks.

She said she has arranged for cultural awareness training later this month for the Payworks executive team, as part of their quarterly meetings in Winnipeg.

“That will give us some awareness of the impact and legacy of the residential schools, break some myths about the Indigenous population and provide some perspective on what it means to engage Indigenous youth in our workforce,” Stewart said.

ashley.prest@freepress.mb.ca