Did you know that including persons with disabilities in your workforce diversity strategies can significantly enhance your department’s and/or organization’s performance? Check out the infographic below – courtesy of Burning Nights – to learn why.
For many young people and those with newly acquired Canadian citizenship, October 19th will be the first time they have the opportunity to exercise their democratic right by casting a vote in a federal election. As first-timers, many of these people may not be aware of the time they are entitled to take, as an elector. Read More
In its Code of Conduct, Google self-identifies as a dog company. Zappos, online shoes and clothes retailer, considers creating “fun and a little weirdness” one of its company core values. Virgin allows its staff to take as many vacation days as they want. These three companies, who have been consistently voted as some of the best companies to work at, are among the many employers who are striving to effectively define their company’s corporate culture, in order to attract and retain the right kind of talent for their organization.
Creating and communicating a company culture that positively reflects your organization boils down to one critical question: what does the organization value above all else?
By identifying the key principals and standards that the organization upholds, employers are able to foster a company culture that not only showcases these values, but also aligns with the overall corporate image. As one of Zappos’s core values is creating “fun and a little weirdness,” for example, it can be assumed that its corporate culture is non-traditional, open and creative.
The Toronto 2015 Pan Am games are in full swing and have captured the fervor of sports fans across the country, as they root for their favourite teams and athletes. In the corporate world, company leaders try to inspire the same level of fandom and engagement in the office, rather than the stadium.
Studies have shown that greater employee engagement has a significant, positive influence on work quality and revenue, and company-sponsored sports teams are a great way to make that happen for the following five reasons:
Internships have changed the way businesses attract and recruit talent, fundamentally replacing the entry-level jobs of yesteryear. This changing landscape inspired our most recent workshop, InternSHIFT, an informative and interactive discussion held earlier this month at the 2015 CACEE National Conference in Ottawa. Through this Town Hall Meeting style session, Naguib Gouda, President of Career Edge, led conference delegates through the changing internship landscape, while exploring how paid internships contribute to our economy and social infrastructure.
For those who were unable to attend the conference, we have assembled the key highlights from InternSHIFT below, starting with a quick pop quiz.
As the temperature outside rises, employers are warming up to the summer internship season; but four months doesn’t always leave much time to make a real dent in many of those seasonal projects.
There are plenty of articles that provide interns with tips to succeed during their internship, but there are also a few things that employers can do to create an environment that inspires optimal performance from their enthusiastic, highly motivated intern during their internship term.
Yesterday, the Government of Canada presented the 2015 Federal Budget, which – among many of our country’s chief priorities – includes a promise of strengthening the Canada Labour Code by extending protection of, “all employees and interns under federal jurisdiction.”
This news represents a big win for those who have joined forces with Career Edge to advocate for fairness and equity for interns in Canada, particularly the Canadian Intern Association, which has advocated tirelessly for interns’ rights since it was founded in May 2012. This inclusion of intern protections in the budget is also being celebrated by all those who have supported the Intern Protection Act (Bill C-636), which is scheduled for voting tonight.
This time last year, Career Edge and the Canadian Intern Association were among many subject matter experts asked to present briefs to the House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Finance (FINA) as part of their Youth Employment Study, and subsequent report. The purpose of these briefs that were presented in a series of Committee hearings was to advise FINA on solutions that would promote higher levels of youth employment.
As a staunch advocate for greater employment and paid internship opportunities for new graduates – including those with disabilities – as well as newcomers to Canada, we are truly thrilled to see that our recommendations were reflected in the budget.
Working with government at all levels and other key stakeholders, we have taken a significant and positive step forward to cultivate socio-economic sustainability for all Canadians by ensuring our youth and new immigrants find meaningful work experience, so they can become taxpayers – not tax burdens.
Last month, NDP members of both federal and provincial parliaments introduced bills that – if passed – will extend workplace standards and safety provisions to interns under the Canada Labour Code (CLC) and Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). The introduction of these bills is a big step forward in terms of ensuring fairness and equity for interns, while making the conditions related to unpaid internships more comprehensive for employers.
The recent global recession threw the economy a curveball, which forced companies to significantly reduce their personnel. Now, with the Baby Boomers beginning to exit the workforce en masse, a labour crisis is fast approaching and Canadian businesses must compete with emerging global markets to attract, recruit, and retain the talent needed for socio-economic sustainability well into the future.
In the TED Talk, “The workforce crisis of 2030 — and how to start solving it now,” Rainer Strack, of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), highlights this projected labour shortage in Canada, and in the world’s 15 largest economies, over the next 15 years.