Whitefeather Forest Initiative
The Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership (ASEP) program is helping improve employment opportunities for Aboriginal people by providing valuable skills development, on-the-job work experience and long-term employment opportunities in the mining and forestry industries.
The Whitefeather Forest Training Initiative represents a diverse partnership between the Pikangikum First Nation and a number of community, federal and provincial government, academic and industry partners. The goal of this partnership is to provide training for 260 Aboriginal people and secure 180 long term jobs in the mining and forestry industries.
Employment created by the Whitefeather Forest Training Initiative will be based on the Whitefeather Forest management and conservation area, and these positions will be in the trades, infrastructure, tourism and recreation sectors related to the mining and forestry industries. A recruitment strategy will be implemented to ensure that disadvantaged groups such as women and persons with disabilities participate and obtain employment.
The ASEP program is helping to shape Canada’s workforce by directly matching skills development to economic opportunities.
Officially launched in 2003 as an $85-million five-year labour market initiative, ASEP is designed to maximize training and job opportunities in major economic development projects across Canada and provide lasting benefits for Aboriginal communities, families and individuals. ASEP meets employers’ needs and labour market demands for skilled workers in a cross-section of large-scale industrial sectors that include forestry, mining, oil and gas, construction and hydroelectric development.
In 2007, the Government of Canada invested an additional $105 million in the ASEP program. Canada’s Economic Action Plan 2009 is committed to enhancing the availability of training by investing an additional $100 million over three years in the ASEP program.
Partners in this initiative include: the Sioux Lookout Area Aboriginal Management Board; the Northern Nishnawbe Education Council; Goldcorp; the Whitefeather Forest Management Corporation; the Pikangikum Education Authority; Confederation College; the Pikangikum First Nation; the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities; the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources; and Natural Resources Canada/Canadian Forest Service.
For more information on this project, visit www.whitefeatherforest.com or send us an E-mail using our online form.
Primary navigation (left column)
Skills
- Trades and Apprenticeship
- Literacy and Essential Skills
- Foreign Credential Recognition
- Foreign Workers
- Labour Market Information
- Labour Mobility
- Sector Councils
- Aboriginal Labour Market Programs
- Prov-Terr Agreements
- Older Workers
- Official Language Minority Communities
- Youth Employment Strategy
- Work-Sharing
- People with Disabilities
Department
- Ministers
- About Us
- Newsroom
- Publications and Resources
- Funding Programs
- Consultation and Engagement
- Success Stories
- Labour Program
- Service Canada