Service Partners

ACCES Employment is a leader in connecting employers with qualified employees from diverse backgrounds. More than 35,000 job seekers are served annually at six locations across the Greater Toronto Area. As a not-for-profit corporation, ACCES receives funding from all levels of government, corporate sponsors, various supporters, and the United Way Greater Toronto.

Visit ACCES Employment CPRNW project page

Vision:

A fully inclusive labour force that reflects the diversity, skills and experience of Canada’s population.

Mission:

ACCES Employment assists job seekers from diverse backgrounds, who are facing barriers to employment, to integrate into the Canadian job market. We achieve this by providing employment services, linking employers to skilled people and building strong networks in collaboration with community partners.

ACCES Employment serves over 15,000 newcomer women a year. They have extensive experience tailoring their programming to address the unique needs of this client group. ACCES Employment currently delivers 3 customized programs for women. Additionally, ACCES Employment has over 33 years of experience delivering employment services, with a specialization in serving immigrants. More than 34,000 job seekers are served annually at six locations across the GTA and through national and pre-arrival online programming, including 5 Employment Ontario programs and over 30 specialized employment services.

ACCES Employment is testing Model 2: Navigating the Canadian Labour Market at their Brampton location with 160 visible minority newcomer women who are either semi-skilled or high skilled. ACCES will offer three versions of the intervention (Version A – basic program, Version B – basic program + creative and problem-solving workshops, Version C – basic program + creative and problem-solving workshops + Valid-8). Each version of the intervention will be offered to several cohorts of participants.

ACCES is implementing a quasi-experimental design that will recruit 160 program participants who will receive services from the intervention. Individuals who have similar characteristics to the program group will be identified to form the comparison group for the analysis. Individuals in the comparison group will not take part in the intervention but has access to all services that already exist and available to this client group.

Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia was created by the merger of Metropolitan Immigrant Settlement Association (MISA) and Halifax Immigrant Learning Centre (HILC) – together we have a combined experience of over fifty years serving immigrants in Nova Scotia. ISANS recognizes the key role of immigrants in Canadian society. We work with newcomers to help them build a future in Canada. We provide a wide range of services to immigrants, from refugee resettlement to professional programs, from family counselling to English in the Workplace.

Visit ISANS CPRNW project page

Vision:

A community where all can belong and grow.

Mission:

Helping immigrants build a future in Nova Scotia.

The Employment and Bridging team provided employment support services for more than 872 new racially visible immigrant women last fiscal year. The staff at ISANS have been involved in a number of initiatives over the past number of years that have involved working most recently with newcomer women looking to start a business. ISANS also has experience delivering employment services to newcomers, including job development opportunities, connecting job ready clients to employment opportunities, and teaching clients job search skills, and how to write a resume among many other supports.

ISANS is delivering Model 2 – Navigating the Canadian Labour Market pilot. ISANS will offering the program to visible minority newcomer women with university education, higher language levels, and barriers to access the labour market. The program has three components. The 7-week (105 hours) in-class training will cover different topics, with a focus on job search. In addition to digital literacy, participants who have identified gaps in their essential skills will be provided with resources for self-directed enhancement for up to 10 weeks.

This model will be evaluated using random assignment, which means that half of the participants will be randomly assigned to a comparison group and half to the program group. The comparison group participants will be offered 7 weeks of individual employment counselling and are eligible to other ISANS services.

MOSAIC is a settlement non-profit organization that serve immigrant, refugee, migrant and mainstream communities in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley as well as throughout the province of BC and overseas via online programs.

Visit MOSAIC’s CPRNW project page

Vision:

Together we advance an inclusive and thriving Canada.

Mission:

MOSAIC enriches communities through services and advocacy furthering the success and sense of belonging of newcomers and individuals from diverse backgrounds.

MOSAIC has more than 40 years of experience working with visible minority newcomer women. Through their programs, clients have updated their skills, obtained or updated required certification and credentials, learned occupation specific language skills, discovered new careers, and gained understanding of the local labour market. MOSAIC’s experience in delivering employment services include providing programs through federal funding (e.g. Career Paths, Workplace Connections Mentoring, and Canadian Professional Work Experience Pilot for Women programs) and provincial funding (e.g. Career Paths, Fast Track to Manufacturing and WorkBC).

MOSAIC project will be using Model 1: Milestones to Employment and they will target VMNW with a background and/or interest in work as a Health Care Aide (HCA) but who are unable to re-enter/enter this career in “traditional” ways. Their target group will consist of about fifty women who will participate in the program with no comparison group.

Participants will complete one month of in-class training, be placed in a paid entry-level position in a seniors care facilities, and receive three months of post placement support. The evaluation of this intervention is a small-scale proof-of-concept study.

Opportunities for Employment (OFE) Inc. is a faith-based not-for-profit corporation providing employment assistance services in Winnipeg, Manitoba. As a leader in research and innovation in the employment development field, OFE continues to pioneer entrepreneurial and incentive-based approaches to employment services, resulting in increased employment rates, growth and productivity in our local economy, reduced reliance on social supports and lower costs to the Manitoba government.

Visit OFE’s CPRNW project page

Mission:

At OFE, our mission is to equip individuals to achieve greater independence by pursuing and maintaining meaningful employment.

Opportunities for Employment (OFE) has a 23-year history of serving visible minority newcomer women and other job seekers, who may present with barriers to employment.   In 2018-19, 623 of OFE’s job seekers self-identified as visible minority newcomer women. Additionally, OFE has been providing employment services to newcomers for 23 years and 55% of our participants were born outside of Canada.  While newcomers can access a variety of programs and services at OFE, they have specific programming for newcomers including the Canadian Workplace Culture Program and the Refugee Employment Development Initiative.

Opportunities for Employment (OFE) Inc. will be implementing Model 1: Milestones to Employment. The program is targeting 270 visible minority newcomer women. In order to monitor and continuously improve performance, a milestones approach will be implemented to help participants reach a series of intermediate indicators (or milestones) believed to be associated with progress towards sustainable employment.

The evaluation of OFE’s pilot programming will use a quasi-experimental methodology. The pilot will be implemented in cohorts. For each cohort, if the supply of eligible participants outnumbers employer demand, OFE will randomly assign a subset of 30 eligible clients to participate in the project as the comparison group. The comparison group will not be eligible for the above program training and services. The evaluation will also use a historical sample of OFE clients with similar characteristics (visible minority newcomer women) as an additional larger comparison group.

The Société Économique de l’Ontario (SÉO) is a provincial network with a professional team that takes an innovative approach to economic development, entrepreneurship, employability and immigration. SÉO engages all of the Francophone and bilingual community’s stakeholders in fostering the prosperity of Ontario and Canada.

Visit SÉO’s CPRNW project page in French and English

Vision:

The Société Économique de l’Ontario (SÉO) is a provincial network that takes an innovative and dynamic approach to economic development, entrepreneurship, employability and immigration to consolidate Ontario’s Francophone and bilingual economic space.

Mission:

An acknowledged leader, the Société Économique de l’Ontario (SÉO), through its professional team, uses an inclusive approach that ensures full participation by the Francophone and bilingual community’s stakeholders in fostering the prosperity of Ontario and Canada.

The SÉO is Ontario’s only economic development and employability organization with a provincial mandate and the capacity to serve all regions of the province. The SÉO began its activities in 2001 and was founded by the Franco-Ontarian community to ensure the economic development of Francophones in Ontario. The Francophone Immigration Networks recognize the SÉO as the expert in the economic integration of French-speaking newcomers for Ontario and have developed a process for referring clients and employers to the SÉO.

SÉO will pilot Model 3: Partnering in Workforce Innovation in three sites: Toronto, Sudbury, and Ottawa and the target number of participants recruited are 160, 160, and 30, respectively. Approximately half of these women in Toronto and Ottawa and all in Sudbury will receive direct support from the project. The remaining 150 will make up a comparison group who will be encouraged to access other services offered by the SÉO. The program focuses on matching qualified candidates to commensurate employment.

In Toronto and Ottawa, the evaluation uses a randomized controlled trial design, by randomly selecting participants (the program group) out of those who volunteer to participate in the project. Individuals in the program group will be offered the services and activities in the proposed program. Individuals in the comparison group will not receive services from the proposed program but remain eligible for all existing SÉO services. The smaller community in Sudbury will serve as a case study location for the pilot where the focus of the evaluation is on the program’s delivery and implementation.

Achēv: formerly the Centre for Education & Training, Achēv is a not-for-profit, community-based organization that delivers employment, youth, newcomer and language services. We also work collaboratively with our employer and community partners to ensure they have the tools and capacity to support others. On an annual basis, Achēv serves over 100,000 individuals at our 9 sites and many itinerant locations in the GTA, and through our national and international online services. We are committed to making a positive difference in the diverse communities we serve.

Visit Achēv’s CPRNW project pages for Model 1 and Model 2

Vision:

We will be recognized as the leader in delivering employment, settlement and language services in the communities we serve.

Mission:

Our professional team will provide the appropriate resources, skills and opportunities which empower people to achieve their potential.

Over the period of 2016 to 2019, Achēv has served over 24,000 unique newcomer women. They have conducted various services and activities with and for visible minority newcomer women such as developing specialized women employment preparation workshops, supporting women’s entrance to employment through development of work placement opportunities, and involving women in planning special events to profile their skills. In 2019, Achēv supported almost 40,000 newcomers in achieving their employment and career goals in Canada.

Achēv is delivering Model 1: Milestones to Employment to visible minority newcomer women with low skills, encounter multiple barriers to employment, and would otherwise be unlikely to make the transition to employment on their own. The model is to prepare women for a job in the high-growth industries.

It includes employer engagement in designing and developing in-class workshops on employability skills and industry-specific practices, workplace training (Occupation specific training), and a paid placement. Employer partners facilitate placement with the goal to hire program participants after they complete 12 weeks of paid placement. Additionally, it includes on-the-job coaching support for job retention and advancement.

Achēv will also be implementing Model 2: Navigating the Canadian Labour Market. This model offers job search training, employer engagement activities and 1:1 coaching to 210 highly skilled visible minority newcomer women who have CLB 7 or higher. The goal of the intervention is to support them in the development of a clear career plan based on a thorough assessment of their essential skills which are needed to successfully navigate the Canadian workforce.

Model 1 research design: Achēv has proposed two potential comparison groups for the evaluation of their model 1 intervention. The first proposed comparison group is comprised of comparable women who are current clients of Achēv but who are not participating in the pilot project. The second potential comparison group is comprised of former clients in Achēv’s database that meet the eligibility requirements for participation in the project. Both comparison groups may be used and the evaluation results using each group compared in order to ascertain the likely validity of both comparison groups.

Model 2 research design: This evaluation uses a controlled trial design by randomly selecting participants into either a program group or a control group. All participants will be pre-screened and assessed by Achēv project staff in advance to ensure that they are eligible to participate in the voluntary research-based project. Individuals who are selected for the program group will directly receive program offerings and job search assistance however individuals assigned to the control group will not receive services from the proposed program but remain eligible for all existing Achēv services.

World Skills is a non-profit employment centre dedicated exclusively to the employment needs of newcomers and to the needs of the local labour market. They help immigrants incorporate into the workforce through employment competency building, job search training and support, cultural competency building and language training.

Visit World Skills CPRNW project page

Vision:

An inclusive Canada that values the skills and talents of new Canadians.

Mission:

World Skills aims to enhance the economic integration of immigrants, refugees and newcomers by: developing and offering programs and services that assist them in increasing their employability in the Canadian job market; and creating employment opportunities for them through increasing public awareness of their employability and by forming partnerships with employers in the Ottawa region.

For more than 20 years, World Skills Employment Centre has worked with over 30,000 visible minority women in supporting them to access the labour market. Our local services include Pre-Employment programs, Workplace Language Training, Employer Engagement Initiatives, Bridge Training programs, Entrepreneurship training and Cross-Cultural Training Workshops for employers and newcomers.

World Skills Employment Centre is piloting two different models: Model 2: Navigating the Canadian Labour Market and Model 3: Partnering in Workforce Innovation. The project will engage 900-1000 visible minority newcomer women. Approximately half of these women will receive direct support from the project. The remaining 500 will make up a comparison group (one for model 2 and one for model 3) who will be encouraged to access other services offered by World Skills Employment Centre. Clients in Model 2 will engage in 10 days of in-class workshops with a focus on portfolio development and essential skills training. Those in Model 3 will participate in 10 days of in-class workshops, a self-leadership workshop series, mentorship through a circle of champions, targeted recruitment events, and employment matching by a recruitment specialist.

Since the two model interventions only differ in their pre-employment preparation activities, both models are essentially testing the same key features. Therefore, it is also possible to pool the data of the two models, while taking into account differences in participants’ language levels between the two, and estimate the impacts of both of World Skills’ interventions jointly.

YWCA is one of Metro Vancouver’s largest and most diversified non-profit organizations. Their holistic, integrated programs and services help lift women and families out of poverty, provide the best start for children and create new opportunities for education, employment and leadership.

Visit YWCA’s CPRNW project pages for Model 2 and Model 4

Vision:

Our vision is to achieve women’s equality.

Mission:

Our mission is to touch lives and build better futures for women and their families through advocacy and integrated services that foster economic independence, wellness and equal opportunities.

The YWCA has focused on serving women and with Metro Vancouver having such a large immigrant, mostly visible minority population, thousands of newcomer women have participated in YWCA services. Two of the YW’s current programs – Pathways to Leadership and Mothers Without Legal Status — solely serve immigrants. Some of their programs geared for women, many of whom were newcomers include FOCUS@Work, Futures in Focus, and LEADS – Learning Employment and Development Skills.

YWCA will be testing Model 2: Navigating the Canadian Labour Market, which will provide 140 visible minority newcomer women with support in developing a clear career plan based on a thorough assessment of their skills, as well as opportunities to connect with potential employers. Potential participants will be assigned to one of two streams, streams A (offered services and activities) and B (offered services, activities, and direct employer connections).

YWCA will also be piloting Model 4: Building Canadian Work Experience. This project will provide 72 visible minority newcomer refugee women, who are receiving either Income Assistance, RAP benefits or private sponsorship, with 12 week-long paid work placements in order to gain on-the-job language practice and practical experience in a Canadian workplace. The program will include a six-week training program followed by a 12-week work placement. Participating employers are eligible for a wage subsidy to cover part of the employee wages.

Model 2 research design: A quasi-experimental design that compares the outcomes of the two streams of participants will be used to estimate the impact of the direct employer connections. The quasi-experimental impact analysis will address whether the addition of direct employer connections further improves outcomes.

Model 4 research design: Model 4 will be evaluated using a small-scale proof-of-concept study to provide evidence that shows whether the concept is feasible and should be consider for wider implementation and testing. The focus of the evaluation is the implementation evaluation. Outcomes will be tracked through pre-post comparisons and some participants’ and may be compared with the outcomes of other refugees through publicly available statistics.