by Stacy Dunn, Employment Journey Researcher
The job search is a lot like growing crops. Your ideas of what you want in a job or career are like the seeds. As the seeds make contact with the ground, rain and sun, your ideas make contact with people, newspapers and other job search resources. This help leads to successful growth.
At The Employment Journey , we are like the almanac of facts and figures to help you find out more about job prospects now and in the future.
The job climate on PEI is good at this time of year. The articles below will help you decide how to plough through the field of job searching or career planning. Feel free to contact us with your comments at employ@pei.aibn.com .
Third Edition of the Career Profile Handbook is now available
You can find PEI-based job information about more than 130 careers in the third edition of the Career Profile Handbook . Please see The Employment Journey homepage for a direct link. The new booklet now has more information on jobs available in the health care sector.
For more about the Career Profile Handbook, go to: http://www.gov.pe.ca/news/getrelease.php3?number=6553
Canada’s Smartest Kitchen
Holland College’s Culinary Institute of Canada and Cavendish Farms recently announced the official opening of Canada’s Smartest Kitchen. The facility will work with chefs, scientists and the food processing industry to cater to Canadians’ changing tastes in the processed food market. Canadians purchase more than $60 billion annually in processed food. The Holland College Tourism and Culinary Centre will also house The Cavendish Farms Culinary Creation Centre. Its sole purpose is researching, developing and testing products for the company’s food line. For more information, go to: http://www.hollandcollege.com/applied_r ... itchen.php
The Business of Vet Medicine Conference
Over 100 animal health and nutrition companies descended on Charlottetown in October for VetHealth Global 2009 – The Animal Health & Nutrition Business Conference. PEI BioAlliance and Invest PEI hosted the second annual conference. It was an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the PEI Bioscience Cluster’s growing business and research capabilities in veterinary health and nutrition products.See what the conference is all about at www.vethealthglobal.com/about.php.
Visit the PEI BioAlliance website www.peibioallance.com for news and upcoming events in PEI’s Bioscience sector.
PEI lab developing new cholesterol-reducing technology
Researchers at the National Research Council Institute of Nutrisciences and Health in Charlottetown are helping to lower bad cholesterol levels by combining natural botanical extracts. This original idea may make it easier for Canadians to manage obesity, diabetes, and high fat levels in the blood. Vancouver-based Omnia Foods Ltd. has acquired the North American rights to this technology. The NRC-INH provides a space for companies, government, and universities to network, invest and bring innovative technologies to market. This is an example of how the research work done right here on PEI can affect the world.
Learn more about it at www.peibioalliance.com/files/20090925_NRC-INH_Omnia.pdf
Summerside welcomes new IT company
Global IT company Millennium Care has come to Summerside. People are currently being recruited for 30 positions at the Summerside office. Successful candidates will be trained to deliver support to the company’s clients in 80 countries. The company has been successful in building teams that resolve and manage IT issues using state-of-the-art software and facilities.
Read more about Millennium Care at
www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6548&lang=
Innovation and Advanced Learning Minister Alan Campbell, centre, chats with Perry Marshall, right, president of Millennium Care Inc. and Rudy Smith, president of the Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce.
Contact centre will bring jobs to Bedeque
It was announced in September that Virtual Agent Services will set up a location in Central Bedeque. As many as 50 new jobs could be created. This in-bound contact centre provides services for the telecommunications, tourism, accommodations, and retail sector.
Find out more about Virtual Agent Services at www.vagent.com
Check the news release at http://www.gov.pe.ca/news/getrelease.php3?number=6525] http://www.gov.pe.ca/news/getrelease.php3?number=6525[/url]
Early Childhood Educators get accelerated training
The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development is addressing the growing shortage of early childhood educators by offering an accelerated training program. Holland College centres in Summerside and Charlottetown and Collège Acadie in Wellington will offer a one-year diploma program to current non-certified staff in licensed early childhood centre. The new program offers an opportunity to finish the program in one year rather than two, and will provide tuition through funding by SkillsPEI Minister Greenan said the new program will help to address the growing shortage of early childhood educators that is occurring on PEI and across the country. For more on this story, visit
http://www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?nu ... amp;lang=E
John J. Sark Memorial Scholarship announced
Aboriginal students attending UPEI can now apply for the John J. Sark Memorial Scholarship. Islander John James Sark earned a post-secondary education at UPEI’s predecessor St. Dunstan’s College and was PEI’s first Mi’kmaq teacher.
Three scholarships of $1,000 each will be awarded to students enrolled in a full-time undergraduate studies program. For more information, go to
[url=http://www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6547&lang=E]www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6547&lang=E[/url]
Minister of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour, Carolyn Bertram, left, UPEI President Wade MacLauchlan and Amanda Malley a Member of the UPEI Aboriginal Student Association, look over the guidelines for the new John J. Sark Memorial Scholarships.
Red meat sector announces working group
The PEI Agriculture Department and its federal counterpart are setting up a working group with red meat industry representatives to discuss program options for the present and future. They will also talk about how to use the new Agriculture Flexibility Fund. For more information, go to www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6588&lang=E
Rural Development Strategy wants your say
The Department of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Rural Development is taking its rural development strategy on-line. Islanders are encouraged to fill on an on-line survey at www3.gov.pe.ca/survey/index.php?sid=66958&lang=en .
The survey is part of the department’s ongoing efforts this year to consult with individuals and groups who work and live in rural PEI. Learn more about the rural development strategy at:
http://www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?nu ... amp;lang=E
Firefighters look to more space, training and personnel
Attendants to the recent Fire Fighters Association’s Annual Meeting and Trade Show learned that the PEI government is giving $150,000 towards training. The money, which comes from the Island Community Fund, will make improvements to their apparatus building to house fire trucks and to serve as a training facility for fire fighters and hazardous materials response team. Read more about it at
www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6584&lang=E
Back in September, volunteer firefighters from Charlottetown, North River and Crossroads climbed to the roof of the Atlantic Technology Centre in downtown Charlottetown for Heroes in the Sky. It was a national initiative to raise awareness of the need for more volunteer firefighters and to raise money. Learn more about it at
www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=276077&sc=98
Tignish restoring Post Office
Tignish Initiatives Corporation is restoring the Tignish Post Office, a designated heritage site. The non-profit community development agency, with funding help from the federal and PEI governments, will take over the 98-year-old post office in an effort to boost Tignish’s economy.
For more information on the plans for the post office, see
www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6545&lang=E
Wind Energy in Kensington
The Town of Kensington is getting into the renewable energy sector by installing a wind turbine for the local wastewater treatment plant. It’s the first of its kind in Canada and officials from the three levels of government say this initiative places Kensington at the hub of alternative energy education. Learn more about Kensington’s wind energy plans at
www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6546&lang=E
New building, new site for Maplewood Manor
The Department of Health is moving up plans to build a new Maplewood Manor in Alberton on the property of the existing manor. Slated to begin construction in 2013, the manor will undergo a replacement plan in the coming months to address much-needed upgrades. Maplewood Manor is part of government’s Healthy Aging Strategy that is looking to improve services to seniors on PEI. Read more about it at
www.gov.pe.ca/news/index.php3?number=news&dept=&newsnumber=6560&lang=E
Workplace literacy is a priority
In September, the Council of Atlantic Ministers of Education and Training released a report on childhood and adult literacy. Regarding workplace literacy, the council wants to increase awareness of the essential skills for learning, to eliminate any barriers learners have and to improve quality standards and guidelines for learners and adult literacy teachers Read the report at http://camet-camef.ca/images/eng/docs/L ... arning.pdf .
PEI population boom
Statistics Canada says PEI’s population grew by 739 people, or .53 percent this past spring. Newcomers from overseas explains the sharp increase. PEI has outpaced the other Atlantic Canadian provinces this year in population. The number of people on PEI is 140,985. To compare our numbers to the rest of Canada, go to:http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidie ... 9b-eng.htm
The library is praised as a great job resource
Did you know that October is Canadian Library Month? To celebrate, Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour Minister Carolyn Bertram praised the PEI public library system for providing Islanders with job resources and literacy and computer skills. She said libraries are helping people find jobs. Read more about it at www.gov.pe.ca/news/getrelease.php3?number=6579 . To find a library in our area, click http://www.gov.pe.ca/cca/index.php3?num ... amp;lang=E
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( 2.9 / 319 )by Stacy Dunn
What did you do for summer vacation? I was among 6,000 people who volunteered at the 2009 Canada Summer Games. I had a lot of fun during Week 2 in Charlottetown at the Pin Trading Centre.
I have a new appreciation for workers in the retail, service and hospitality sectors. I was told to ask people questions such as "Who are you here to see?" It was a joy to see their faces light up when they said they were here for their son, daughter or grandchild. I learned that small talk is a good skill to have in the workplace. Besides leading to increased productivity or sales, small talk means you genuinely care about the other person.
The Employment Journey's own Gloria Welton was at the Games cheering on her son Kyle. He played on the PEI men's basketball team. See what Gloria's eye caught during the Opening Ceremonies and Kyle's first game.
These pictures also incidate the wonderful experience people such as athletes and volunteers must have had.
Medal Hope Fulfilled
Kurt McCormack, left, of Souris who captured the bronze medal in the Triple Jump and Coach and Olympic gold medalist Dave MacEachern speak to the media before the Opening Ceremonies.
The Teams
Kyle, left, and his team walk to the sounds of cheer and applause. PEI Men's Basketball Team Manager Gary MacLeod, right, and Coach Jared Cheverie, far right, walk with their players.
PEI
Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador
Northwest Territorities and the Yukon
Ontario and Saskatchewan
Quebec
Alberta
Nunavut
The Dignitaries
Prime Minister Stephen Harper with Team PEI
Governor General Michaelle Jean and PEI Premier Robert Ghiz with his wife, Kate, welcome the athletes
Sources of Inspiration: PEI Olympian Heather Moyse, the official Canada Games Flag and the flame.
The Entertainers
Bagpipers and dancers from the College of Piping
Confederation Centre Young Company and the Grass Mountain Hobos
PEI vs. Ontario game
Coach Jared Cheverie goes over the game plan with the team. He congratulates Kyle on his basket.
Kyle and the team show Ontario that they "got game".
Teams PEI and Ontario congratulate each other on a good game
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( 2.9 / 290 )Islanders distinguished themselves at the 2009 Canadian Skills Competition held in Charlottetown in May.
Islanders were awarded eight medals for their efforts, including:
- Dallas Ellsworth won gold in electrical wiring, secondary division
- Jenny Gillis won gold in cooking, secondary division.
- Marshal Noye won silver in outdoor power and recreation equipment
- Shannon MacAskill won silver in restaurant service, post-secondary division
- Kurt MacLeod, Tyler MacPherson, Nicholas Crozier and Derek Profit won silver in robotics
- Jonathan Menzies won bronze in cooking, post-secondary division
- Pete Niewhof won bronze in automation and control, post-secondary division
- Shawn Ready and Greg Murray won bronze in 3D character animation
Take a look at the pictures below. They show some of the PEI competitors who went up against the best in Canada.
Photos by Heidi Riley
Guest judge Mike Holmes, contractor and host of "Holmes on Homes", signs his autograph for a future tradesperson.
Read Gold Medal Cook Jenny Gillis' story at www.employmentjourney.com/archives/EJMay09_13.pdf
Electrical Wiring
Cabinet Making
Carpentry
Plumbing
Precision Machining
Robotics
Hairstyling - secondary division
Hairstyling - post-secondary division
Aesthestics
Fashion Technology
Job Interview
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( 3 / 336 )Although Earth Day was April 22, it's strictly a coinidence that our April/ May issue covers a variety of "green” jobs.
Our cover story is about Nature’s Crops International. This new PEI company is looking for growers to plant crops new to PEI, and is planning a biorefinery that transforms seeds into oils that can be used in medicine, cosmetics and other industrial uses. It’s another way to see farmers and scientists working together. We also profile Phytocultures Ltd. which is encouraging farmers to grow the hascap berry to add to their growing season. The berry has twice the antioxidants of blueberries and doesn’t need chemical sprays. Both companies have employment opportunities.
Maritime Lighting Solutions is the only distributor east of Ontario that sells and installs Solatube Daylighting Systems. This product cuts down the use of electricity by bringing natural light into a room. Moonsnail Soapworks, which makes body-care products with no artifical dyes, perfumes or preservatives, is expanding its retail and production space.
What else is inside the April/ May 2009 issue of The Employment Journey ?
1. DeltaWare is a Charlottetown IT company always looking for qualified staff.
2. Apprenticeship training and certification equals job advancement.
3. Potential increase in road and bridge construction jobs this year.
4. Couple handle two separate seasonal businesses which keeps them going all year round.
5. Marine Show returns to West Prince.
6. RDEE PEI honours a young entrepreneur with a taste for music.
7. Resources West Inc. and Canada Games 2009 team up for various jobs.
8. UPEI Career and Job Fair provides a variety of employment leads.
9. Canadian Skills Competition this May on PEI helps Islanders build their job skills.
10. Adult learner is following his passion for working in the IT field.
11. GED program now offered in Scotchfort.
12. Service Canada reviews student summer work options.
13. Cultural Forum being held May 8.
Other News
BioAlliance, UPEI celebrate marketing students’ success
Eleven student marketing teams and three bioscience companies were involved this year in the 2nd Annual UPEI School of Business/PEI BioAlliance Marketing Strategy Competition. The competition engages business students in real marketing experience with bioscience products created right here on PEI for global markets.
UPEI and the PEI BioAlliance gave marketing students the experience of working with the companies. The team of Cayla Leger, Jennifer MacLean and Brad Gallant won for their marketing strategy for Aqua Bounty Canada Inc. The strategy may be used in national and international promotions and sales activities.
Rory Francis, Executive Director of the PEI BioAlliance (far left) and Valerie Barbosa, AquaBounty Canada Inc. (far right) present the BioAlliance Award for the UPEI School of Business Best Bioscience Marketing Strategy to the winning team, including: Cayla Leger Jennifer MacLean and Brad Gallant.
Printing and graphic communications industry seek certification
Printing and graphic arts are part of the manufacturing sector which has been hit hard with layoffs during this economic downturn. The Canadian Printing Industries Sector Council is looking for innovative ways to keep afloat. It recently published a report on exploring certification of its workforce. The council says certification is one way to strengthen and sustain skilled workers. Another solution is to engage employers, educators and training providers in ensuring employees have opportunities to upgrade skills and build morale.
Read the full discussion paper on Certification follow this link: http://www.cpisc-csic.ca/eng/pdf/TEP%20 ... %20Web.pdf
Check out the Canadian Printing Industries Sector Council survey on certification at
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=fSjz1yLXGQJfmeKk13_2bkog_3d_3d
Career Development Association Annual Conference
The Employment Journey staff attended the day-long event April 24. Career counselors, teachers and others interested or involved in promoting job skill development or career exploration heard speakers and participated in a Q & A session. We learned that social networking technology like blogs and viral videos may reach job seekers and employers more often in the near future. Check out the CDA website at www.peicda.ca .
How may we reach out to you job seekers and employers more in this highly technical age? Email us your views at employ@pei.aibn.com.
The Employment Journey is funded by the Canada/ Prince Edward Island Labour Market Development Agreement (www.lmda.pe.ca).
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( 3 / 372 )Our March/ April issue is your summer employment information source.
We talked to many employers at the Tourism Showcase, and they say the demand is going to be great for employees in retail, food and beverage service and accommodations.
A recent Guardian article reported on the staggering number of visitors expected: 4,400 athletes and coaches from Canada Games; 63,000 passengers from 41 cruise ships and 28,000 delegates from 200 meetings and conventions. Impress employers at a job interview with those stats!
Do you plan to work or volunteer for the 2009 Canada Games? If you do, you could get the gold medal for adding that “Wow” factor to your résumé.
Research shows volunteer work is as valuable as paid work. Think about it and let us know what you think. Email us at employ@pei.aibn.com.
What's inside our March/ April issue of The Employment Journey?
• 2009 Canada Summer Games needs more staff and volunteers
• Western PEI manufacturing company is expanding
• Information Technology company is growing
• Optical business looks to the future
• Entrepreneur breaks down barriers with persistence
• Agriculture sector salutes employer and employee
• Fishermen go into the carpentry business
• Jobs in tourism
• Job interview tips
• Labour Market Information websites to help your job search
• Youth programs
• Adult Education
In other news:
A new round of applications to the Community Infrastructure Program was announced March 11. Small communities have another chance to get funding in roads, water, sport and recreation, culture and tourism.
Five family medicine residents will start the two-year residency program this July. They will be working at the QEH, Prince County Hospital and communities throughout PEI. The residents will work with licensed doctors who will act as mentors. This program was established with the goal to have doctors, who train on PEI, establish practices here.
Graham Watts of Kilmuir was awarded the prestigious Frank H. Sobey Award. The award recognizes business students who have excelled academically and demonstrated a commitment to extracurricular and community activities. In 1999, Graham started Nature Trails that makes walking sticks, bird houses, bird feeders, bat houses and twig pencils.
Read more about the fourth-year UPEI student’s story in our March/ April 2008 issue. Go to our homepage and click Archives on the top menu.
PEI Literacy Alliance published a special newsletter for International Adult Learners Week. We have known all along that adult learners’ stories are inspirational. Reading their stories lets you know that anything is possible.
Read Jeanne Roche’s story in our March/ April issue.
Check out all the stories at www.peiliteracy.ca and click on publications.
The Charlottetown Rotary Club published its annual supplement of PEI businesses March 24. Finance, retail, health, animal health, law and more were featured.
These people may help you get connected to an education and/ or career you want.
The Employment Journey is funded by the Canada/ Prince Edward Island Labour Market Development Agreement (www.lmda.pe.ca)
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