Employment Assistance Services for Official Language Minority Communities in Canada

Deadline: 20-Jun-2024

The Government of Canada is inviting applications to support Official Language Minority Communities (OLMC) organizations to deliver Employment Assistance Services (EAS) to English-speaking communities in Quebec and Francophone communities outside Quebec in their first official language.

EAS includes services such as providing job search assistance, counselling/case management, job placement services, and unassisted services to help individuals prepare for, obtain and/or maintain employment.

Program Objectives

• The objectives of the EF-OLMC – EAS Stream are to:
  • provide EAS to OLMCs through OLMC organizations, based on an understanding of their unique labour market needs (through a “by and for approach”), and
  • integrate these organizations’ services into the broader provincial and territorial (PT) skills and employment delivery systems to better support clients’ needs, including through communication and two-way referrals

Funding Priorities

• The overall policy priorities that guide this stream include:
  • ensuring that individuals living in OLMCs across Canada have access to EAS in their official language of choice, and
  • strengthening OLMC vitality by providing job search assistance, counselling/case management services, unassisted services or other EAS for individuals living in OLMC to find and gain employment
• The Department will assess projects comparatively and collectively. Priority may be given to proposed projects that meet one, or a combination of, the following criteria:
  • provide services in more than 1 of the 4 defined EAS activities
  • establish and maintain collaborative relationships with other service providers that contribute to the success of the service model (such as sectors, regions, or industries, or with community/non-profit groups, educational institutions, or other service providers)
  • contribute to pan-Canadian coverage by serving larger areas of OLMC clients, including those living in rural or remote areas, and
  • serve individuals living in OLMCs with intersectional identities (other underrepresented groups such as 2SLGBTQI+, Indigenous peoples, newcomers, persons with disabilities, racialized peoples, women or youth)

Funding Information

• Up to $10 million per project, per year. Please note: The program seeks to fund OLMCs across Canada with its budget of $31M in 2024-2025 and $50M annually starting in 2025-2026; therefore, it will aim to provide project funding reflective of the project’s reach in relation to the needs of all OLMCs across Canada.

What this Program offers?

• The Enabling Fund for Official Language Minority Communities (EF-OLMC) program supports Employment and Social Development Canada’s (ESDC) legal obligations under the Official Languages Act (OLA). The program supports Official Language Minority Communities (OLMC) organizations to identify and respond to the labour market needs of their communities, delivering approaches that are “by and for” their communities, in the spirit of the OLA.
• As part of the Action Plan for Official Languages 2023 to 2028: Protection – Promotion – Collaboration, Budget 2023 announced approximately $208 million over 5 years for the expansion of the EF-OLMC program. This includes the introduction of a new Employment Assistance Services (EAS) stream, which will fund OLMC organizations to deliver EAS to their communities based on an understanding of their unique labour market needs.
• Funding will be available for the period of fall 2024 to March 31, 2029.

Eligible Projects

• Your project must:
  • deliver at least 1 of the Employment Assistance Services (EAS) activities to individuals living in OLMCs
  • describe how you are or will be working closely with the provincial or territorial (PT) government in which you are located during your project to refer clients to employment and training services beyond EAS, based on the needs of the client
  • have an end date of no later than March 31, 2029
  • request a budget of less than $10M per fiscal year

Project Activities

• Eligible EAS activities include:
  • Job Search Assistance
    • Job search assistance activities focus on helping the individual find work based on their existing level of skills and qualifications. Job search activities include structured and/or personalized supports that help individuals conduct an informed job search. Examples include, but aren’t limited to:
      • resume writing workshops
      • interview practice and coaching
      • job placement facilitation
      • networking events
      • job fairs
  • Counselling/Case Management Services
    • Examples of counselling/case management activities include, but aren’t limited to:
      • creating a return-to-work action plan based on the client’s individual employment needs
      • assisting clients with job search action plans
      • monitoring individuals’ progression in implementing their action plan
      • providing specialized assessments or professional diagnostic services to support a client’s job search
  • Unassisted Services
    • Unassisted services are the services or resources that support a client’s ability to search independently for a job. They include, but aren’t limited to:
      • providing access to local labour market information, employment opportunities, career planning services, and information about existing education and training programs
      • providing equipment to support unassisted job search or career planning, such as access to a computer with internet to facilitate a job search
  • Other Employment Assistance Services
    • Additional services not defined in the other categories listed above. These can include, but aren’t limited to:
      • job retention services (those that help individuals maintain employment)
      • business networking opportunities
      • mentorship, guidance and support to jobseekers
      • mentorship, guidance and support to entrepreneurs to help them promote awareness and expand the availability, accessibility and quality of employment opportunities
  • While providing in-depth skills training isn’t eligible for funding under this CFP, organizations can refer clients to existing training funded by other sources to support in-depth skills development as part of their project activities.
• Other mandatory activities include:
  • referrals to other service providers
  • project and participant data collection and reporting

Eligibility Criteria

• Eligible recipients are:
  • Official Language Minority Community (OLMC) organizations that are not-for-profit
  • OLMC organizations that are for-profit
  • OLMC educational or vocational institutions
  • Indigenous organizations that serve an Indigenous community where the first official language used – either English or French – is the minority language in that province or territory
• Applicants must demonstrate in their application that they are an OLMC organization. In keeping with the spirit of reconciliation, self-determination and recognition of rights, Indigenous organizations aren’t required to identify as an OLMC organization to be eligible for funding.
• For the purposes of this call for proposals, an OLMC organization is one whose mission and/or mandate is dedicated primarily to supporting individuals living in OLMCs nationally, provincially, regionally, or locally, including educational or vocational institutions. For profit organizations may be eligible for funding if the nature and intent of the activity funded by the Department is non‑commercial, not intended to generate profit, and supports program priorities and objectives.
• The Department has solicited a proposal from la Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique (FFCB). Funding to other organizations across Canada will be determined through this open call for proposals (CFP).

For more information, visit Government of Canada.