Black Employment Partnership Committee

Phase 1 & 2
Three Year Business Plan
2001 to 2004

Executive Summary

Many concerns and issues have plagued our community for generations. In the past, we have only discussed these concerns among ourselves and behind closed doors.

With the emergence of the Black Employment Partnership Committee (BEPC) and the Black Employment Resource Centre (BERC), it is time to bring these concerns and issues to light. We have a place where representatives of all the communities can come together from behind closed doors and have their voice heard. The opportunity is present, the need is clear, and the time is now.

There have been African Nova Scotian communities in the western region of Nova Scotia for the past 300 years. For the past 40 years, they have been trying to take pro-active steps to bring about change. Since the 1980's, the non-Black Community, the local towns, and institutions were opening their doors for the social advancement of racial minorities. However, since the downturn of the fishing industry, the affect mainly for the Black Community was low end, unskilled labour. The closures of Dominion Textiles and the Rio Algom Tin Mine hit the Black Community the hardest. The amalgamation of several school boards into one had a negative affect on the Black Community, but subsequent resolutions by the Nova Scotia government allowed elections for African Nova Scotian representation enabling us to become more active in local school boards.

On May 17, 1989, workshops were held in Yarmouth to discuss the concerns of the Black Community of South West Nova. Present at the workshops, were representatives from each of the Black Communities in Yarmouth, Greenville, and Shelburne. The workshops focused on two specific areas of community concern: Employment and Social Services. Representatives made several suggestions, with general consensus being one voice for all the communities with one common goal. With the recent decision by HRDC to form BEPCs, this comes at an opportune time for the Black Communities of Yarmouth, Greenville, and Shelburne. When these communities allow the BEPC to become the vehicle through which their concerns and issues are addressed, they will be able to move toward self-sufficiency.

The BEPC will be comprised of 15 representatives from the Black Communities of Yarmouth, Greenville, and Shelburne. The mandate of the BEPC will be to watch over and protect, if at all possible, through partnerships with local community organizations and HRDC, the interests of all Blacks with high prioritization on employment and social services.

Introduction

The BEPC has been established to increase employment opportunities for Blacks and disadvantaged persons so that a pathway to long term employment can begin.

The BERC opened in the fall of 1997. Because of the efforts of the Yarmouth Black Community Development Board and the Yarmouth Black Employment Partnership Committee, the BERC was created through the partnership with Human Resources Development Canada. The mandate of the BERC is to work with other community partners to address barriers to employment faced by members of the Black Communities of Yarmouth and Shelburne Counties and the District of Clare. The goal of the BERC is to enhance the employability of the community members and to facilitate long-term employment.

The following draft proposal is Phase 1 & 2 of the Yarmouth/Shelburne Black Employment Partnership Committee's Three Year Business Plan.

The Board of Directors of the Black Employment Partnership Committee feels that with monetary backing from HRDC, Phase 1 of this plan to assess career development needs and provide appropriate workshops can be up and running by the fall of 2001. Phase 2 can be enhanced from recommendations and solutions achieved from Phase 1 and implemented and running by the summer of 2002.

Committee Make-Up

Mandate
'“The mandate of the Black Employment Partnership Committee (BEPC) is to work with other community partners to address barriers to employment faced by members of the Black Communities of Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare.  The goal of the BEPC is to enhance the employability of the community members and to facilitate long term employment.”

Vision
“The vision of the Black Employment Partnership Committee (BEPC) is to improve educational, social and economic development of African Nova Scotian people located in Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare by all appropriate means.  The BEPC has been established to satisfy the coordination and planning needs for the African Nova Scotian residents of Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare.”

Methodology
A major concern of the Black Community of Yarmouth and Shelburne is that most programs offered by Human Resources Development Canada do not meet the needs of the Black Community (although some HRDC programs are changing).
(See APPENDIX A)

In recognition of this, our plan is made up of two stages; Phase 1 includes the needs assessment and career development workshop, and Phase 2 includes the follow-up component corresponding to the three possible classifications under which the graduates of the program will fall.

Phase 1 - the need for orientation

A pre-course orientation will be held to familiarize interested participants with the details of the program. Registration and other documentation may be taken as needed.

Course Assessment

An evaluation will be made at the beginning of the program for each participant, and the same evaluation made at the end. The expected result is to measure the amount of progress, or learning, as a result of the program experience.

Individual Employment Needs Survey

A personal Employment Needs Survey will be filled out by the participants at the beginning of the program, and evaluated at its completion by the participant and the instructor.

Educational Achievement Test

There may be a need to test each participant using (CAAT Level B-A). This will be done on an individual basis. Note: this can be done with the help of the Learning Centre at the Nova Scotia Community College.

Self-Directed Job Search

Each participant will be required to complete a Self-Directed Job Search that will help them learn about themselves, their job choices, and their career. The process will help them determine their personality type and match that type to the occupational type.

Career Development Workshop

Job seekers will participate in a career development workshop to assist in the development of knowledge and skills necessary to secure satisfactory employment as determined by the participant. Life skills, practical experience, and occupational interest will be assessed throughout the process. In addition, participants will be exposed to a variety of role models that will agree to act as mentors to those participants committed to pursuing their career goals.

Evaluation

Participants will be evaluated and classified under three categories:

1) Participants who are "job ready".
2) Participants who need upgrading and further training to become job ready.
3) Participants identified as eligible for business ownership and training.

Needs Assessment/Career Development Workshop

Purpose

The purpose of this program is to assist in the identification of knowledge and skills necessary to secure satisfactory employment as defined by the participant and is intended to be used as a tool to assess the employment goals of participants with respect to:

1) Assistance needed for immediate placement in the job market.
2) Access the need for further education and training to be able to enter the job market or begin a career.
3) Access clients who have the ability to start and manage their own business.

Rational

This workshop will be based on research done by the Yarmouth/Shelburne Black Employment Partnership Committee. The committee has determined that there is a need in the Black Community for this type of workshop, with special emphasis on the problems faced by the lower educational level, lower income African Nova Scotian clients from Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare.

In terms of defining his or her own value system, the Black job seeker is confronted with integrating a variety of cultural factors plus the additional task of dispelling myths about his or her role as a worker. The unemployed Black Communities of Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare counties has many needs in a variety of areas: (budgeting, remedial education, skills development and counselling) most of which this type of program will provide. A comprehensive, long-term strategy is needed to identify the action plan implementation that will achieve solutions to long-standing problems and issues in the Black Communities of Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare.

Course Objectives

Within the above parameters, this program will allow participants to:

1.  Explore career objectives, opportunities and barriers to achievement.
2.  Identify role stereotypes and past discrimination which inhibit achievement of career goals and develop mechanisms to handle   diversity.
3.  Develop short and long term employment goals and to develop an action plan which details how these goals are going to be met, a personal timetable showing when these goals are to be met, and a monitoring system to ensure the success of the action plan.

Employment

• There is a general lack of employment in the areas of Yarmouth and Shelburne.
  
  
• Very little help from government agencies. Blacks need appropriate training to assist them in the search and maintenance of desirable careers.
  
  
• Blacks are traditionally searching for job opportunities in areas that are suffering significant decline (hairdressing, hospitality, retail, fish processing, etc.)
  
  
• There is a trend to reduce human resource volume in private and government organizations in favor of automated services. Blacks have not focused on computer training because of system education problems.
  
  
• There is a lack of financial support for small business development principally because Blacks normally lack the business planning support to interest funders or moneylenders.

Unemployment and Under-employment

There is a problem of high unemployment and high under-employment in the Black Community. The problem of unemployment is connected not only to the dismal economic performance of the Atlantic Region as a whole where there are simply not enough jobs to go around, but also to the history of racism and discrimination that still exists and prevents Blacks in high numbers from gaining access to employment opportunities as they emerge.

The problem of under-employment is harder to detect. Blacks are mostly hired in entry level, seasonal, and low paying positions in hospitality, fish processing plants, and are rarely promoted. Persons in these positions may have equivalent experience for more advanced work but lack the educational qualifications. In the majority of cases, financial and family obligations would not allow these persons to quit to obtain upgrading qualifications.

Recommendations for Employment Issues

1) Work with HRDC and employers to identify funding mechanisms available for income support for individuals presently working in low-income positions to upgrade their qualifications. Some issues we have to consider are childcare and transportation as well as employer support for these training initiatives.

2) Establish a Needs Assessment/Career Development program to identify the skills and training requirements among the unemployed. The BEPC has already assembled an inventory of resumes so they can market the skills of some of their clients to potential employers.

3) Contact the employers in the Growth Industries in Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare areas. This can be done by utilizing the labour market analysis compiled by Human Resources Development Canada. Target municipal and provincial organizations to comply with the equal opportunity hiring process to potential employers.

4) Conduct a survey of employers in the area using HRDC Occupational Profiles to identify employers in growth industries and assess their projected hiring needs. Match these with data information from career development program. Target municipal and provincial organizations to determine their compliance with equal opportunity and affirmative action programs.

Summary of Recommendations

1.   Conduct an assessment of the Black student population from grade primary through to university, and assign students to mentor       groups who will provide help in designing career study paths and employment directions.

2.  Identify and deliver training programs that will enhance the opportunity for our Community. Programs could include personal

       development, academic upgrading and preparatory programs, job search skills, and career development programs.

3) Work with HRDC and employers to identify funding mechanisms available for income support for individuals presently working but who wish to upgrade their qualifications. Issues of childcare and transportation are important, as well as employer support for training initiatives.

4) Establish a Needs Assessment/Career Development program to identify the skills and training requirements among the unemployed and to assemble an inventory of resumes in the Black Community that the BEPC can use to market the skills of the community to potential employers.

5) Conduct a survey of employers in the area using HRDC's Occupational Profiles to identify employers in growth industries and assess their projected hiring needs. Match these with data information from career development program. Target municipal and provincial organizations to determine their compliance with equal opportunity and affirmative action programs.

6) Promote entrepreneurial training that may lead to new business start-up and stability.

7) The BEPC must take the lead in identifying business opportunities that it will operate on behalf of the community. Examples to start could include the distribution of black products to residents, tourists, and the establishment of a commercial cleaning service.

Phase 2 Opportunities

To establish a Community Development Office within the Black Community headquartered in the Black Community and supported by grants from the Black Employment Centre and HRDC.

The office now employs a full-time director and an administrative support person to continue the process. Primarily their focus will be to implement initiatives from the BEPC relating to education and employment. With the addition of a community counsellor, (this individual should be drawn from the community and trained specifically for the community needs), other services related to spousal abuse, child abuse, teen pregnancy, substance abuse, etc. could be installed.
Revisit the idea of establishing a Black Cultural Centre in the Hubert Brush Centre, to be known as the South West Nova Black Heritage Centre, incorporating architectural designs done by architect Robert Chipman for the Black Community.

Outside of the Black Cultural Centre in Dartmouth, (which is not large enough to detail the Black experiences of all communities in Nova Scotia), the Shelburne Historical Museum, and Yarmouth County Museum carry relatively small amounts of information to the history of culture of Blacks in South West Nova Scotia.

At this time, we are able to draw upon the BLHS from Birchtown, Shelburne County, as a source for local history of the Black Loyalists. This opportunity for research and implementation should be explored to it's fullest. (Contacts are Elizabeth Cromwell and Tenna Paynter)

The concepts call for the Centre to detail the history of Black Communities from Digby to Liverpool. The process would trace the development of the communities from Africa through the Caribbean and ultimately the Underground Railroad that ended in the area. The development process would almost force communities to work together since almost every display item would have to be donated, and individuals within communities would have to work together since they would contribute the material on their communities.

The implications for tourism are obvious since these are few points of interest to visit in the area. It is anticipated that employment opportunities for a Director, a Curator, and an Administrative Support Person handling both administration and gift store sales would be created. Spin-offs to the area economy would extend to taxi and bus drivers, other souvenir stores, local arts, craft artists, and food establishments. Initial projections to create this opportunity would be costly in the beginning but in the long term they would prove to be relatively low.

It is envisioned that the top floor of any building can house the Centre. The first floor can be utilized as a multi-purposed facility that can provide administrative support services for the community including accounting, tax, and socialization for seniors and youth. A day-care centre used not only to administer to the needs of parents but also as a training medium for those people interested in the career. A public meeting place for formal and informal events and finally, a place to situate training programs to foster community economic development.

Small Business Training Program

At the conclusion of the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop, it is the hope of BERC to implement an Introduction to Small Business Program. This program will satisfy the need of small business training in the Black Communities of Yarmouth and Shelburne. The program can be established using existing institutions such as Black Employment Resource Centre, Black Business Initiative, Open For Business, Yarmouth Regional Business Corporation, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, and Economic Development. Its ultimate objective being the establishment of a core of committed individuals who will be trained in all facets of business procedures sufficient to administer the affairs of these entrepreneurs, and to provide a medium whereby continuous learning can take place.

This course will take eligible clients through a planning procedure which will fully address the unique group dynamics of these clients starting with conflict resolution, facilitating effective meetings, life skills issues, business math and English review, computer literacy, and intensive instruction in small business administration and will allow the development of business plan for projects already identified and targeted for the community.

Purpose

The purpose of the program is the placement of participants in the local labour market as planners and administrators for small business development in the Black Communities in the Yarmouth, Shelburne, and District of Clare.

Program Objectives

At the conclusion of the program, participants will be able to:

1) Design and implement the operating environment for a small Black business.
2) Develop effective business plans for small business operations.

Summary

When clients finish the 'Small Business Training Program', we are hoping that with the help from organizations such as Black Business Initiative, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Yarmouth Regional Business Corporation, Economic Development, and some financial institutions, we will be able to generate small business opportunities for members of the African Nova Scotian Community.

Black Loyalist Heritage Society

Background Information

This year will mark one decade of dedicated service in heritage and community development by the members of the Black Loyalist Heritage Society (BLHS). The BLHS has laid the groundwork to develop the first Black Loyalist heritage tourism site in Canada. After sponsoring the first archeological dig in 1992 at Birchtown to discover the lost, but not forgotten, Black Loyalist settlement, the BLHS has been uncovering the lost history of the Black Loyalists piece by piece.

Birchtown will represent the only Canadian Black heritage tourism site that offers historical interpretation of North America's first settlement of free Blacks. Birchtown also represents the largest settlement of free Blacks outside of Africa in the 1700's.

The Birchtown Site Restoration was a part of the Society's vision of a larger, national, historic park. The Birchtown Site Restoration Project included continued registration and documentation of the descendants of the Black Loyalists. The Birchtown School House and St. Paul's Anglican Church underwent renovations to offer a venue to accommodate visitors.

The Birchtown School House hosted the Nova Scotia Museum's traveling exhibit "Remembering Black Loyalists, Black Communities". This summer past, the BLHS opened St. Paul's Church to visitors and used the facility as an intimate venue for the Heritage Site's official opening ceremonies. A small building was built to house BLHS offices. Society operations will be headquartered in the office starting in October 2000.

The Black Employment Partnership Committee acknowledges the efforts from the BLHS during 1999/2000 while it employed a Registrar to obtain, gather, and publicize the steps of the BLHS and its Birchtown historical site.

The Black Employment Partnership Committee recommends that further support be attained for the BLHS during the period of 2001-2004 to accomplish this intention to utilize financial support from the federal government programs.

Western Region Alliance of Black Communities

Goals and Objectives

The goal of the Western Region Alliance of Black Communities (WRABC) is to watch over and protect the interest of all Blacks with high prioritization in regard to Education, Employment, and Community Services. The WRABC will act as a sounding board as well as a buffering pad between government agencies and Black Communities. The WRABC will compile and document available agencies and resources as well provide seminars and information lines to the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia. Additional documentation pertaining to the statistical background of education, employment, and community services dependability in ratio to financial funding availability and usage by same communities.

The objectives of the WRABC are:

• To provide the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia with the avenues available to them regarding education, employment, and community services.
  
  
• To enhance the abilities of WRABC to better serve the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia.
  
  
• To provide information on training and education, labour market trends, and resource availability.
  
  
• To provide statistical information to appropriate government agencies to establish a basis for future financial funding guidelines for the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia regarding employment development.
  
  
• To provide statistical information to appropriate government agencies to establish a basis for future financial funding guidelines for the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia regarding economic development.
  
  
• To provide statistical information to appropriate government agencies to establish a basis for future financial funding guidelines for the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia regarding entrepreneurial development.
  
  
• To provide an outline regarding Black history in South West Nova Scotia to better establish the groundwork for Black history within the education system.
  
  
• To provide statistical information to appropriate government agencies to establish a basis for future community services guidelines for the Black Communities of South West Nova Scotia regarding alternative and diverse programs.

We recommend that funding be made available to WRABC to support the ongoing activities of community development.

Rationale

This organization deals with issues and concerns that plague the Black Community such as social services, justice, education, and statistical data gathering.

No other organization has the mandate to advocate on behalf of these under-developed communities. It is HRDC's policy to assist community-supported groups in capacity building and development.

The WRABC was able to bring together the communities of Digby, Lequille, Weymouth, Yarmouth, Shelburne, Liverpool, and Bridgewater and to organize those communities to become involved and identify the needs of those particular areas.

Identifying Strategic Issues Facing the Community

Cyclical economic problems in the economy are beyond the control of the Black Community except in an indirect, political fashion. The community needs to develop a system of channeling information so that planning can occur to access opportunities when they become available. In support of this, the BEPC and the Black Employment Committee (BEC) needs to establish strong organizations that are linked to other resource agencies in the community so they are not taken by surprise by events unfolding in the community.

A starting list of those linkages may be:

Community Economic Development

Community Economic Development (CED) through training provided by Human Resources Development Canada to the Black Employment Partnership Committee in Michigan. It is the opinion of the Board of Directors that Community Economic Development is an important aspect in the growth and development of the Black Community. It is recommended that the Board of Directors seek training for members and community members who did not attend the training session. There are potentially two to three organizations that our BEPC is aware of that could provide such training. One organization is the Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC). A second is the Atlantic CED Institute and the Truro Community College, which have met with representatives responsible for delivering training. Although training costs can be expensive, it is suggested that other community groups be included in the training, lessening the cost for each individual organization.

A list of potential partners interested in Community Economic Development is:

The Yarmouth/Shelburne Black Employment Partnership Committee Board of Directors feels this is the course for our organization for the up coming years. We feel that with time, patience, and compassion the recommendations put forth will go a long way in helping the Black Community of Yarmouth, Shelburne, and District of Clare. We look forward to a strong and healthy relationship with HRDC.

The BERC's goal has always been to provide the best service as possible to its clients, and will continue to ensure that their clients receive the best service and that their needs are met.

The BERC endeavours to keep the best interests of all clients in mind. It is imperative that the whole community recognizes that people of African heritage are "peoples first" and ensure that all employment and social programs are fully accessible.

The BERC feels that education is the key and it is our responsibility as advocates and leaders of the Black Community to see that the Tri-County area communities look beyond their fear and help to ensure a more successful, productive, and conducive future for members of the Black Community.

The staff of the BERC works with the Black Community, providing help and advocate on their behalf to overcome educational, social, and cultural issues. We strive to recognize the ability and understand the challenges our clients face. We encourage our clients to look towards the future.

We provide a great service to our clients and to the community as a whole. We strive to remain current in our research and in our training. We will continue to partner with HRDC as well as other community partners and employers to provide our clients with the best service possible. HRDC and other community partners are devoted to our cause and committed to the advancement of African Nova Scotian people in Yarmouth, Shelburne, and the District of Clare. (Thank you for your continued support).

One God, One Aim, One Destiny

Black Employment Partnership Committee
Meetings Schedule for 2001-2002

2001
April 18 Full Committee Meeting
May 16 Individual Committee Meeting
June 20 Full Committee Meeting* (last full committee meeting before summer vacation)
July 18 Individual Committee Meeting
August 15 Individual Committee Meeting
September 19 Full Committee Meeting
October 17 Individual Committee Meeting
November 21 Full Committee Meeting
December 21 Christmas Party

2002
January 16 Full Committee Meeting
February 20 Individual Committee Meeting
March 20 Full Committee Meeting

Wage Subsidies

The federal and provincial governments are working together to help unemployed individuals gain access to our programs and services under the Canada-Nova Scotia Agreement on a Framework for Strategic Partnerships.

What is a Wage Subsidy?

Wage Subsidies are designed to help people who are having difficulties finding work. For example, persons with a disability, or young people with limited work experience can benefit from work experience made possible through a Wage Subsidy.

Human Resource Centres of Canada, the Nova Scotia Department of Community Services and/or our partner agencies can offer temporary Wage Subsidies to employers as an incentive to hire people they might not hire otherwise. Employers benefit by filling a vacant position, and unemployed people benefit by learning new skills and gaining valuable on-the-job experience.

Eligible Employers:
· businesses
· non-profit organizations
· municipalities
· band/tribal councils
· public health and educational institutions

An employer's proposal is evaluated on the quality of the work experience offered to participants, and on the likelihood that the job will continue in the long term.

Eligible Participants:
1) Unemployed Nova Scotians:
· currently receiving Employment Insurance (EI) benefits; or
· whose EI benefit period ended within the last three (3) years; or
· who received EI maternity or parental benefits within the past five (5) years and are re-entering the labour force after having left it to care for newborn or newly adopted children.

2) Social assistance recipients in Nova Scotia.

Duration:

A Wage Subsidy can be used for up to 18 months but the average duration is between 26 to 30 weeks.

The Wage Subsidy should not exceed 60% of the total wages paid to the individual for the period of the agreement.

For more information, contact the nearest Human Resource Centre of Canada or Department of Community Services office.

Targeted Wage Subsidy was one of the first programs used by the BERC. With no client dollars to spend, this was thought to be the most accessible program for the BERC to use. However, when assessments on clients' needs were made it was discovered that a large number of clients were not HRIF eligible, which is a major component of most HRDC programs. The job at hand was to get as many clients as possible, HRIF eligible so they could become HRDC clients. The question to be answered was what programs were available that BERC clients could access? The following were found; Opportunities Fund for Black and Disabled clients, Youth Dollars for clients 15-30, and Community Service Dollars.

Through these programs we were successful in getting many clients HRIF eligible. Also, through these programs, it was discovered that a great many of our clients are and were not job ready. Thus, the need for the Black Employment Partnership Committee Business Plan for Stage One was to put into action the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop for each client of Yarmouth and Shelburne BERCs.

Expected Results of the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop

To gain a better understanding of each clients' strengths and weaknesses, to build on strengths and improve weaknesses, and to allow this office to never place a client in a job or placement for which they do not have the tools or skills to succeed.

Skills Development (SD)

The federal and provincial governments are working together to help unemployed Nova Scotians gain access to our programs and services under the Canada-Nova Scotia Agreement on a Framework for Strategic Partnerships.

What is Skills Development?

The Skills Development employment benefit is designed to help unemployed Nova Scotians obtain the skills they need to return to work. It provides financial support to help pay for the costs of skills development courses or programs.

Eligible clients will work with a Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC)
counsellor to develop a return-to-work action plan. They will use up-to-date labour market information to determine a realistic employment goal and a starting salary. If specific skills are necessary for a client to reach that goal, then SD might be available to help fund that development.

Eligible Participants:
Unemployed Nova Scotians:

· currently receiving Employment Insurance (EI) benefits; or
· whose EI benefit period ended within the last three (3) years; or
· who received EI maternity or parental benefits in the past five (5) and are re-entering the labour force after having left it to care for newborn or newly adopted children.

Financial Assistance:
Eligible clients will negotiate financial support with their HRDC counsellor. Together, they will work out the client's contribution towards skills development costs and the amount HRDC will provide. Depending on your individual circumstances, financial assistance may be provided for the following:
· weekly basic living expenses
· the cost of caring for your dependents
· tuition and books
· if you have a disability, the costs of a special arrangement or device needed to take the course
· the cost of daily transportation to/from the course. If you live a long distance from where the course is given, the cost of periodic travel to/from your home and your temporary residence may be available
· other instructional costs.

Types of Skills Supported under SD:
· Certificate and diploma programs
· Academic upgrading or Adult Basic Education programs
· Literacy skills
· Other special skills development courses may be considered.

Duration:

The length of the SD program depends on the type of skills development identified in your back-to-work action plan.

For more information, contact the nearest Human Resource Centre of Canada

Skills Development was one of the first programs used by the BERC. With no client dollars to spend, this was thought to be the most accessible program for the BERC to use. However, when assessments on clients' needs were made it was discovered that a large number of clients were not HRIF eligible, which is a major component of most HRDC programs. The job at hand was to get as many clients as possible, HRIF eligible so they could become HRDC clients. The question to be answered was what programs were available that BERC clients could access? The following were found; Opportunities Fund for Black and Disabled clients, Youth Dollars for clients 15-30, and Community Service Dollars.

Through these programs we were successful in getting many clients HRIF eligible. Also, through these programs, it was discovered that a great many of our clients are and were not job ready. Thus, the need for the Black Employment Partnership Committee Business Plan for Stage One was to put into action the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop for each client of Yarmouth and Shelburne BERCs.

Expected Results of the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop

To gain a better understanding of each clients' strengths and weaknesses, to build on strengths and improve weaknesses, and to allow this office to never place a client in a job or placement for which they do not have the tools or skills to succeed.

Self-Employment

The federal and provincial governments are working together to help unemployed individuals gain access to our programs and services under the Canada-Nova Scotia Agreement on a Framework for Strategic Partnerships.

What is Self-Employment?

Self-Employment provides eligible people with various types of support for a fixed period while they are starting up a new business. Assistance can include coaching, ongoing technical advice, and financial support. Coaching will be tailored to your needs and can include subjects such as business plan development, accounting, marketing, and using computers.

Human Resource Centres of Canada and the Nova Scotian Department of Community Services, along with various community partners and delivery agents, will provide a range of services designed to help you become a successful entrepreneur.

Eligible Participants:

1) Unemployed Nova Scotians:
· currently receiving Employment Insurance (EI) Benefits; or
· whose EI benefit period ended within the last three (3) years; or
· who received EI maternity or parental benefits within the past five (5) years and are re-entering the labour force after having left it to care for newborn or newly adopted children.

2) Social assistance recipients in Nova Scotia.

Individuals currently on an EI claim continue receiving their regular EI benefits and these may be "topped-up" to a locally determined flat rate. Other participants negotiate a rate of income support or receive a locally determined flat rate.

Duration:

The duration of the program is negotiable with a 52-week maximum.

For more information, contact the nearest Human Resource Centre of Canada or Department of Community Services office.

Self-Employment was one of the first programs used by the BERC. With no client dollars to spend, this was thought to be the most accessible program for the BERC to use. However, when assessments on clients' needs were made it was discovered that a large number of clients were not HRIF eligible, which is a major component of most HRDC programs. The job at hand was to get as many clients as possible, HRIF eligible so they could become HRDC clients. The question to be answered was what programs were available that BERC clients could access? The following were found; Opportunities Fund for Black and Disabled clients, Youth Dollars for clients 15-30, and Community Service Dollars.

Through these programs we were successful in getting many clients HRIF eligible. Also, through these programs, it was discovered that a great many of our clients are and were not job ready. Thus, the need for the Black Employment Partnership Committee Business Plan for Stage One was to put into action the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop for each client of Yarmouth and Shelburne BERCs.

Expected Results of the Needs Assessment and Career Development Workshop

To gain a better understanding of each clients' strengths and weaknesses, to build on strengths and improve weaknesses, and to allow this office to never place a client in a job or placement for which they do not have the tools or skills to succeed.

West Nova Persons with Disabilities Committee

West Nova Persons with Disabilities Committee is a community-based organization, which provides specialized employment services for persons with disabilities. The committee strives to assist persons with disabilities prepare for, obtain, and keep employment or self-employment.

Opportunities Fund

This committee manages the Opportunities Fund budget for West Nova. The Opportunities Fund supports a broad array of employment activities for persons with disabilities who are not eligible for employment benefits under the Employment Insurance Act.

Other services offered to persons with disabilities:

· intake interviews to determine clients needs
· targeted wage subsidies
· employment counselling and career development
· referrals to training and upgrading programs
· information and/or referrals to other community service providers
· referrals for academic and/or skills testing
· job preparation skills

Services offered to employers:

· wage subsidies for persons with disabilities
· follow up services and monitoring of the job placement
· counselling for special accommodations
· resource support
· information on accessibility standards
· and much more.

Clientele, Who do we serve?

"Persons with Disabilities" persons who have a long-term or recurring physical, mental, sensory, psychiatric or learning impairment and who (a) consider themselves to be disadvantaged in employment by reason of that impairment, or (b) believe that an employer or potential employer is likely to consider them to be disadvantaged in employment by reason of that impairment, and includes persons whose functional limitations owing to their impairment have been accommodated in their current job or workplace.

Self-Identification

The clients served by the Committee must self identify that they are living with a disability. We serve all persons with disabilities from Lockeport in Shelburne County to Saint Bernard in Clare, Digby County. Any persons with disabilities who would like to receive services from West Nova Persons with Disabilities Committee's office should visit or contact the office by phone.

What else an employer should know?

If you are considering hiring a person with a disability, we can help you address these issues and many other questions you may have. As a matter of fact, you probably have an employee with a disability already…some disabilities are hidden.

For more information, contact the West Nova Persons with Disabilities Committee office