News Bulletin - March 2021
On Wednesday, February 24, 2021, from 11:00 AM to 12:00​ PM, we presented Episode #3 in the NL Workforce Innovation Centre (NLWIC) #tipoftheiceberg​ series: Immigration and Workforce Development in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The panellists were Dr. Tony Fang, Full Professor and Stephen Jarislowsky Chair in Economic and Cultural Transformation, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Ms. Lesley Galgay, Success Manager-Diversity, Genesis, to discuss updates to their respective NLWIC-funded research projects.

Director of NL Workforce Innovation Centre Sharon McLennon provided an overview and update on NLWIC, including the recently announced Economic Immigration Ideas Lab within NLWIC.

If you missed this important webinar on immigration and workforce development, click the button below to view on our new YouTube Channel.
Subscribe to the NLWIC YouTube Channel!
We are excited to announce the launch of the new NL Workforce Innovation Centre YouTube Channel. Here you will be able to view any NLWIC events including #tipoftheiceberg webinars you may have missed or want to share or to view again.

To stay up to date with any new video launches, subscribe to our YouTube Channel and get notified when new videos are released.

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March is Work-Integrated Learning Month!
During the summer and fall of 2020, the NL Workforce Innovation Centre partnered with The Conference Board of Canada and the Business + Higher Education Roundtable to co-convene a series of virtual focus group and stakeholder engagement sessions with representatives of industry and post-secondary institutions in Newfoundland and Labrador. This was part of a national project to advance work-integrated learning (WIL) across the country.

The purpose of the sessions was to understand better the barriers students and employers face in creating or accessing work-integrated learning (WIL), especially in the wake of COVID-19 and to identify solutions to address those barriers.

Canadian businesses will need talent with practical experience and future-relevant skills to stay competitive in the wake of COVID-19.

Read the session summary reports below.
The Diversity Institute conducts and coordinates multi-disciplinary, multi-stakeholder research to address the needs of diverse Canadians, the changing nature of skills and competencies, and the policies, processes and tools that advance economic inclusion and success.

Our action-oriented, evidence-based approach is advancing knowledge of the complex barriers faced by underrepresented groups, leading practices to effect change, and producing concrete results.
The 50 – 30 Challenge: Your Diversity Advantagee
About the 50 – 30 Challenge

The 50 – 30 Challenge is an initiative between the Government of Canada, business and diversity organizations. Together with project co-creators, many of whom have been striving to increase corporate diversity for decades, the government has developed a plan to improve access for racialized persons, people who identify as LGBTQ2, people living with disabilities, as well as First Nations, Inuit and Métis to positions of influence and leadership on corporate boards and in senior management.

The goal of the program is to challenge Canadian organizations to increase the representation and inclusion of diverse groups within their workplace while highlighting the benefits of giving all Canadians a seat at the table. The government has always believed in seeking the best available advice when making decisions.

How to participate

Organizations, not-for-profits and other institutions that are interested in the 50 – 30 Challenge can sign up by filling in the 50-30 Challenge form.

If you have any additional concerns or questions, you can contact us at 

Join World Skills for International Women's Day on Facebook Live on Sunday 7 March at 7 p.m. GMT
As the world of work changes, it is important not to replicate structures of the past that supported men having most of the key positions in new and emerging industries. That is why we support the theme of International Women’s Day 2021, #ChooseToChallenge.
We #ChooseToChallenge ourselves and our 85 Member countries and regions to promote an environment in which skills have no gender.
As millions of talented young women fear their dreams are about to vanish due to the pandemic, they should know they are not alone, that WorldSkills and many more millions stand with them.
 
Ahead of International Women's Day, join us for a WorldSkills Champion Talk Facebook Live on 7 March (7 p.m. GMT), featuring #SkilledWomen and men sharing what a gender-equal world means to them, and ways you can #ChooseToChallenge inequality.
Genesis Helps Build Amazing Companies
Genesis is one of 20 workforce innovators leading research projects funded by the NL Workforce Innovation Centre. The research project, "Exploring Ways to Foster Innovation in Technology Entrepreneurship Through Increased Female Participation and Immigration", explores how organizations can attract human capital from all over the world to come to Newfoundland Labrador to live, work, and innovate.  
The NL Workforce Innovation Centre (NLWIC) has a provincial mandate to provide a coordinated, central point of access to engage all labour market stakeholders about challenges, opportunities and best practices in workforce development. 

The Centre’s goal is to promote and support the research, testing and sharing of ideas and models of innovation in workforce development that will positively impact employability, employment, and entrepreneurship within the province’s labour market and particularly underrepresented groups. Funding for NLWIC is provided by the Department of Immigration, Skills and Labour (ISL) under the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Labour Market Development Agreement.