News Release Archive

ECONOMIC RENEWAL--NS WORKS-EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM ANNOUNCED
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  The Nova Scotia government will partner with business,
  municipalities and non-profit organizations to create
  seasonal work in high unemployment areas of the province,
  Economic Renewal Minister Robbie Harrison announced in the
  Legislature today.
  
  The winter employment program will see about 625 people go
  to work in jobs created by the private sector, municipal
  governments and non-profit organizations.
  
  Under the direction of the Economic Renewal Agency, Nova
  Scotia Works will provide employment for 325 people in ares
  of high unemployment, including Victoria, Richmond,
  Inverness, Digby, Guysborough and Cape Breton counties.
  Another 300 jobs will be added by the Nova Scotia Department
  of Housing and Consumer Affairs. The housing jobs will be
  distributed province-wide, giving first priority to those
  six counties.
  
  "While 9,000 more people are working now as compared to this
  time last year, there are still areas of the province
  suffering from high unemployment," Mr. Harrison said. "Nova
  Scotia Works will give people in those areas an opportunity
  to get back into the workforce."
  
  The Economic Renewal Agency will provide a 50 per cent wage
  subsidy to employers who create job opportunities between
  Jan. 15 and May 4, 1996. ERA will contribute $1 million to
  help create all 625 jobs. The ERA funding will help lever
  another $1.6 million from the private sector and municipal
  governments.
  
  Through local employment resource centres, the Nova Scotia
  Department of Community Services will help employers
  identify potential employees, including social assistance
  recipients and unemployed workers who are not eligible for
  unemployment insurance and do not qualify for TAGS.
  
  "Our objective is to develop good prospects for long term
  employment during the winter months," said Mr. Harrison. "We
  recognize that certain areas of the province need and
  deserve special attention and that's why we're concentrating
  on the regions with the highest unemployment rates."
  
  Under the Nova Scotia Works program, jobs will be allocated
  based on the unemployment rate and the population of each
  county. The unemployment rate around the province ranges
  from 24.6 per cent in Victoria County to 7.9 per cent in
  Halifax County. The six counties participating in Nova
  Scotia Works all have unemployment rates over 15 per cent.
  
  Application forms for employers are available at any of the
  Economic Renewal Agency's Business Service Centres, Access
  Nova Scotia Centres, or at any Canada Employment Centre.
  Once the projects are selected, jobs will be posted at the
  local employment centres.
  
  -30-
  
  Contact: Linda Laffin  902-424-6810
  
  trp                     Dec. 01, 1995