Canada Summer Jobs

Contributed - Feb 20, 2009 / 5:00 am | Story: 45146

Calling all employers! The application period for Canada Summer Jobs 2009 started February 2nd. The deadline for applications is February 27th, 2009.

Canada Summer Jobs helps employers provide students with productive summer work by offering financial assistance to not-for-profit organizations, public-sector employers and small businesses with 50 or fewer employees so they can create high-quality summer job opportunities for students between the ages of 15 and 30.

Not-for-profit employers are eligible for up to 100 percent of the provincial/territorial minimum hourly wage and mandatory employment-related costs.

Public-sector employers and small private-sector employers with 50 or fewer employees are eligible for up to 50 percent of the provincial/territorial minimum hourly wage.

The Canada Summer Jobs program is part of the Youth Employment Strategy which is comprised of initiatives aimed at providing secondary and post-secondary students with summer employment opportunities.

Students are eligible to participate if they:

Are between 15 and 30 years of age

Have been registered as a full-time student in the previous academic year and intend to return to school on a full-time basis in the next academic year

Are Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or have official refugee protection status under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and

Are legally entitled to work in Canada, according to relevant provincial/territorial legislation and regulations.

Canada Summer Jobs plays a key role in meeting the needs of students, while supporting organizations providing important services to communities. In 2008, the Government of Canada concluded agreements with more than 20,000 organizations to support the creation of about 36,000 summer jobs for students.

Through Budget 2009, the Government of Canada is providing an additional $20 million over two years for Canada Summer Jobs. And that’s not all. Initiatives such as Canada Summer Jobs are only one way the federal government is helping students.

Other measures the Government has taken include:

Significantly increasing annual transfers to the provinces and territories for post-secondary education. These transfers are up by more than $1 billion since 2006. The Government is earmarking $3.2 billion for post-secondary education, in fiscal year 2008-2009, through the Canada Social Transfer.

Committing $123 million over four years starting in 2009-2010 to streamline and modernize the Canada Student Loans Program. Every year, more than 300,000 students take advantage of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada’s Canada Student Loans Program to achieve their learning goals.

Consolidating the Canada Student Grant Program. This will provide $250 every month for low-income students and $100 a month for students from middle-income families. For low-income students with dependants, the Program will also top-up the monthly payment to $200 per child under 12 years old. As well, the new low-and middle-income grants will be available for all years of undergraduate study, whether university, tech or trade school, or community college.

Making it easier for students to manage their debt load by replacing the Interest Relief and Debt Reduction programs with the innovative Repayment Assistance Plan. Under this new plan, students would pay no more than 20 percent of their income towards their loans.

Helping students with permanent disabilities to pursue post-secondary education by forgiving the loans of borrowers who are unable to repay their loans due to a severe permanent disability. As well, the Government will introduce an accelerated version of the Repayment Assistance Plan. This measure will ensure that students with permanent disabilities pay back only what they can afford, but for these students, no debt will remain after 10 years, as opposed to 15 years. It will also take into account the extra costs faced by disabled borrowers when calculating repayment assistance.

Providing a 20-percent grant on contributions made to a Registered Education Savings Plans to help Canadian families put money aside for their children’s higher learning.

Helping modest-income families to start saving early for their children’s post-secondary education through the Canada Learning Bond.

For more information on this or any of the Government’s initiatives on behalf of students and youth please go to:

Service Canada

or call the Youth Info Line at 1-800-935-5555.

If you cannot find the information you need, please feel free to contact my office at 470-5075 or [email protected].

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.

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About the Author

The Honourable Ron Cannan was first elected as Member of Parliament for Kelowna-Lake Country in January, 2006. He was subsequently elected in the 2008 and 2011 federal elections. He is a member of the Conservative Caucus.

On September 13th, 2012 Ron was summoned to be a member of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and will provide advice to the Government as a member of the Priorities and Planning Sub-Committee on Government Administration.

Ron successfully uses his experience and knowledge as a long-time Kelowna City Councillor and regional government representative to be an effective and enthusiastic champion for his riding and his constituents.

His greatest satisfaction comes from helping local organizations and citizens obtain the support they require from Ottawa.

He is also dedicated to doing what it takes to ensure that the growing and vibrant communities in his riding continue to thrive and prosper.

He is proud of the partnership and cooperation between federal, provincial and municipal governments which have resulted in significant infrastructure projects including upgrades to Highway 97, expansion of the Kelowna International Airport, a new horticulture strategy for fruit growers, obtaining a full service passport office for Kelowna and addressing critical economic issues such as labour skills shortages.

He works closely with the local Chambers of Commerce and once a year arranges meetings for the Chamber with Cabinet Ministers and senior policy staff in Ottawa to move forward important local issues such as crime prevention and labour skills shortages.

He is also an ardent champion for important community initiatives including homelessness, mental health, women’s resources, and support of arts and culture.

On Parliament Hill, Ron has been a member of the Standing Committee on International Trade since 2006 supporting initiatives which will broaden the economic opportunities for local businesses and businesses Canada-wide.

In previous parliamentary sessions Ron has been a member of the Standing Committee for Government Operations and Estimates, Veteran’s Affairs, Human Resources and Social Development, the Scrutiny of Regulations Committee, and the Standing Committee for Fisheries and Oceans.

Ron is also involved in a variety of inter-parliamentary organizations: he is Vice Chair of the Canada-US Inter-Parliamentary Group, and a member of the Canada-Taiwan Friendship group.

As Chair of the Conservative Wine Caucus, Ron works with his colleagues across the country to promote the wine regions of Canada. Ron tabled Motion 218(formerly Motion 601) which supports direct to consumer purchasing of Canadian wine. His motion became Bill C-311, sponsored by MP Dan Albas, seconded by Ron, which was passed into law on June 28th, 2012.

Prior to entering politics, Ron developed a diverse business background as a small business owner and had several years experience in marketing and sales management working with corporations including Coca-Cola, Costco and Corus Entertainment. 

Very active in his community, Ron has been a Director for both the Central Okanagan Regional District and the Central Okanagan Hospital Board. Ron also served on the Okanagan University College Access to Training Advisory Board, the Glenmore Elementary School Parents Advisory Council, and the Kelowna Christian School Fund Raising Committee. He was co-founder of the Okanagan Volunteer Festival. Currently Ron is a member of the Sunrise Rotary Club of Kelowna and, along with his wife Cindy, was the honorary Chair of the 2012 Canadian Cancer Society Daffodil Ball.

Ron lives a family-oriented and active lifestyle with his wife Cindy. He is the proud father of three daughters and grandfather to three grandsons. His hobbies include music and sports.

The views expressed are strictly those of the author and not necessarily those of Castanet. Castanet does not warrant the contents.

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