Ontario pauses some skills training funding for unemployed people: career colleges

They've stopped just about every provincial program that supports some hard-working person just trying to get ahead. Opposition parties are raising concern that in addition to OSAP payments being paused, the province's Better Jobs Ontario fund is also on hiatus. I hate the word pause. It's like it's going to resume. If it doesn't resume in a couple of days for some people and a couple of weeks for some people, they're in deep, deep trouble. That's what we've heard. We're looking for more details. And that's concerning because, look, Ontarians need good jobs. People who are just getting started or coming out of school or retraining, they need that help. The Better Jobs Ontario program helps people who have been unemployed for at least 12 weeks and are part of low-income households or have been laid off rejoin the workforce in in-demand jobs. Those who are eligible can access up to $28,000 for training that takes one year or less or up to $35,000 for a one- to two-year program. The money can cover things like tuition, transportation and basic living expenses. Things were going smoothly before and about two weeks ago, the applications were not being processed as quickly and clients were starting to get letters, form letters, simply indicating higher than normal volumes are slowing the process down. When asked about a pause to Better Jobs Ontario funding, the Press Secretary for Ontario's Minister of Colleges pointed to systemic concerns about OSAP usage at private institutions. In a statement, she says in part, OSAP payments to students at these institutions are paused and other streams of provincial funding to private institutions, past and present, are under review. There's growing concern not just from organizations who connect clients to Better Jobs Ontario funding, but also from private colleges who provide the training. They need to get back to the job market. That's what the money is funding for. It has been a good tool to get people back to the market, learning new skills, missing skills. Some in the private college industry say oftentimes those who apply for the funding are highly skilled and highly educated immigrants. They come here and they work survival jobs. They work as a dishwasher. They work as a cleaner. They work for Subway, but they have skill sets that we need in Canada and can contribute to our society. Employment agencies and private colleges say the government needs to be accountable and provide clarity. Families are paying for this government's incompetence and that minister should resign. In the legislature, calls for college's minister, Nolan Quinn, to resign were rejected. Dale Manuck, CBC News, Toronto.