Mayor's Youth Employment Summit - Status Report

The Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee recommends the adoption of the following joint report (January 27, 1999) from the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services and the Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services:

Purpose:

This report summarizes the key findings from the Mayor's Youth Employment Summit, provides a status report on follow-up activities, and recommends that the City explore the feasibility of developing a youth employment information clearinghouse focused on youth employment programs and services.

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

There are no financial implications.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1)the City explore the feasibility of developing a Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse, and report back to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee regarding this initiative;

(2)a final report on Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative from the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services be submitted to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee in August 1999, such report to measure the Initiative's effectiveness regarding:

(a)participation of at-risk youth;

(b)job retention rate; and

(c)active commitment within the corporate sector to address youth unemployment issues and to employ at-risk youth;

(3)this report be forwarded to the Economic Development Committee for information; and

(4)the appropriate City officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.

Council Reference/Background History:

Youth unemployment has been identified as a significant issue in the City of Toronto. In April 1998, the Mayor called for a Youth Employment Summit to bring together over one hundred representatives of business, government, youth and youth service agencies. The theme of the one-day summit was "Count me in!".

The Summit was organized by the City in partnership with Human Resources Development Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training, the Learning Partnership, the Ontario Association of Youth Employment Centres, and the Community Action for Youth Employment Partnership.

Participants at the Youth Employment Summit identified a range of factors which have contributed to persistently high levels of youth unemployment and underemployment in Toronto in the 1990s.

Factors Contributing to Youth Unemployment:

The introduction of new technologies and greater automation has reduced the number of entry-level clerical, service and blue-collar jobs, and placed an emphasis on computer literacy skills. Economic restructuring, de-industrialization and downsizing have brought about hiring freezes, reduced the number of entry-level positions, increased the number of experienced and trained adult workers currently competing with youth for jobs, and reduced opportunities for youth to develop skills through on-the-job training.

Some employment training/retraining programs require youth to have previous employment experience, thus excluding large numbers of youth. In order to prepare for and access training opportunities, youth may require help in the form of life skills training, academic upgrading and other supports. Youth from immigrant communities face additional access problems, including language barriers and unfamiliarity with Canadian norms.

Summit participants identified a range of issues that need to be addressed:

(a)greater flexibility is needed regarding the nature and length of job training programs for youth;

(b)there are youth who face extreme barriers to employment and require additional supports before being able to participate in existing employment training programs;

(c)accessing information about youth employment programs and services has been difficult for both youth and employers;

(d)there is a need to remove barriers in program design and delivery that inhibit access; and

(e)there is a need for programs to be more responsive to the access issues faced by youth from immigrant communities.

For more details regarding Summit proceedings, please see the Appendix A: Count Me In, Mayor's Youth Employment Summit, Events and Summary.

Comments and/or Discussion and/or Justification:

The Youth Employment Summit resulted in two key initiatives:

(a)Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative was launched in July 1998 to address the need for greater flexibility in job training programs for youth; and

(b)the Community and Neighbourhood Services Department, in collaboration with Human Resources Development Canada and the Ontario Ministry Education and Training, is exploring the feasibility of a Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse focusing specifically on youth employment programs and services.

Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative:

Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative is a training and placement program delivered in co-operation with community agencies and the private sector. It is funded through a City allocation of $200,000.00, with Federal and Provincial government contributions of $400,000.00 each.

Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative was launched July 27, 1998. Funds are committed to March 31, 1999, and will maintain youth in job placements to the end of July 1999.

The Initiative has been delivered through eight existing community agencies, and includes several components:

(a)a Call Centre Training Initiative for 15 youth delivered through Goodwill Industries;

(b)a wage subsidy program which, in 1998, placed 260 youth in jobs with approximately 130 participating employers; and

(c)a 397-JOBS hotline that serves as an access point, connecting interested youth and employers to the Initiative.

The Call Centre Initiative provided one time funding to kick start the program. It has graduated all fifteen participants directly into jobs that pay from $8.50 to $14.00 per hour.

The wage subsidy program offers participating employers incentives, in the form of wage subsidies, to hire disadvantaged youth into entry level positions. Employers are encouraged to retain youth beyond the subsidy period. The Department projects that somewhere between four and five hundred youth will be placed by the end of the program and although it is still early, the program is enjoying a 79 percent job retention rate.

In February, the Mayor will host a corporate lunch to showcase the Initiative and to solicit commitments from the private sector to provide additional job placement opportunities for youth.

The wage subsidy component has been administered, at no cost to the City, through the Provincial Ministry of Education's Job Connect program, thus maximizing the funds available for the training and placements.

The wage subsidy program component has had a positive impact on the provincial Job Connect program. The service delivery model for 1999 has been enhanced to closely match the approach taken through Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative. Specifically, in 1999, the Job Connect model will allow longer training placements (up to six months) and increased flexibility in the use of the subsidy for employers (up to $4,000.00 per participant). This will result in a more flexible program combined with a more focused and effective use of resources without the requirement for ongoing City funds.

The attached Progress Report (Appendix B) identifies that Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative has strengthened partnerships among the relevant sectors, placed youth in lasting jobs, and fostered improvements in the provincial Job Connect program service delivery model. A final report will be provided by the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhoood Services to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee in August 1999.

The report will recommend next step strategies to address youth employment issues and highlight the effectiveness of this model regarding participation of at-risk youth, the job retention rate, and increased corporate sector commitment to address youth unemployment and employ at-risk youth.

Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse:

One of the key recommendations stemming from the Mayor's Summit on Youth Employment was the need for accurate and up-to-date information on available programs and services for youth. To that end, the Department has begun to explore the potential for developing a Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse with other levels of government and community-based agencies. This Clearinghouse would provide information to youth and parents, to agency staff wanting to make referrals, and to potential employers looking for information on wage subsidy programs or other initiatives.

The Community Action for Youth Employment Partnership (C.A.Y.E.P.) has been facilitating discussions at the community level to gather information and identify the required steps and resources to make the Clearinghouse a reality. The Department has been involved in this process.

Community Information Toronto currently provides an information service, the Interactive Training Inventory, which is supported by the City of Toronto and Human Resources Development Canada. Although this is a valuable service in linking people to training opportunities, it does not provide detailed, complete, up-to-date information on the range of available programs and services.

The Community and Neighbourhood Services Department participates in a Planning and Service Co-ordination work group with Human Resource Development Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training. Human Resource Development Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training have retained a consultant to identify overall information needs, as a first step towards developing a comprehensive employment program and services data base. The development of a Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse model will be informed by the findings in this report.

City recreation centres, whose catchment areas include large numbers of immigrant youth, currently support youth in job search processes. Access to a Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse will increase the ability of community centres to assist youth in overcoming barriers (e.g., language) and in connecting to employment resources. It recommended that the City consider Parks and Recreation sites and libraries as possible access points for the Clearinghouse.

Community Information Toronto and Community Action for Youth Employment Partnership have committed to working with the City, the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training, and Human Resource Development Canada to develop a model for a comprehensive clearinghouse. The Department will report back to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee on this initiative's progress later in the year. On the basis of this update, the City may wish to bring together youth, the business sector, and youth-serving organizations to provide input to the development of the Clearinghouse.

Conclusions:

The activities undertaken in 1998 have strengthened partnerships among the government, community-based and business sectors, placed youth in lasting jobs, and fostered improvements in the provincial Job Connect program delivery model.

In order that the City continues to demonstrate its commitment to addressing youth employment issues, it is recommended that the City continue to work in partnership with Human Resources Development Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training to explore the potential for a Youth Employment Information Clearinghouse focusing specifically on youth employment programs and services.

It is also recommended that the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services report to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee on Mayor Mel's Youth Employment Initiative in August 1999.

Contact Name:

Nancy Matthews: 392-8614

(A copy of each of Appendix A and B referred to in the foregoing report was forwarded to all Members of Council with the agenda of the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee for its meeting on February 11, 1999, and a copy thereof is on file in the office of the City Clerk.)