Futureworx had been selected as a delivery partner on the Women First: Women Employment Readiness Pilot Program, WERP administered nationally by PTP in Toronto, with funding support from Employment and Social Development Canada. The focus of this undertaking was to study the impacts of including wrap-around supports in the delivery of services to marginalized women. This project was heavily researched and monitored federally with scientific rigor furnished with the engagement of Social and Research Development Canada.

The goal was to identify promising models for providing pre-employment and skill development supports defined as foundational and transferable skills training (including literacy and essential skills training or the Skills for Success Model) and wrap-around supports for different groups of multi-barriered women.

Our participation in this initiative allowed us to build on our strong foundation, and to identify and test skills development and wrap-around supports for women. The strength of the collaboration with PTP, SRDC, ESDC and Alberta Workforce Essential Skills Society lied not in designing pre-employment programming but rather from capitalizing on our collective experience. In short, this project afforded us the opportunity to test what our experience tells us will make the difference.

Futureworx received funding from the Nova Scotia Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration to deliver a local upskilling pilot to address labour market barriers in East Hants, Nova Scotia. This pilot, called the ProsperNova program, was designed and delivered in partnership with the East Hants Economic Working Group (EHEWG) – a local working group comprising the East Hants Chamber of Commerce, the Municipality of East Hants and Nova Scotia Works Centres.

ProsperNova, a workforce development pilot that engaged unattached jobseekers and employers to respond to skills shortages. To enhance their labour market participation, the program provided unattached jobseekers essential employability skills training that includes core theory and concepts to work collaboratively, efficiently, and safely in a future workplace, while developing strong foundational and social-emotional skills needed to succeed in the workforce. In the program, jobseekers took part in a combination of skills development courses such as personal employability skills, essential skills, and technical skills specific to industry.

Futureworx and the EHEWG recognized that many employers were not ready to receive candidates that have been historically unattached to and marginalized from the labour market. The uniquely tailored employer component of the pilot was pivotal to rectifying this issue. At the same time as engaging the jobseekers, ProsperNova provided training and support to employers that were customized to their needs and those of the local labour market.

ProsperNova concluded early in 2023. Blueprint was engaged to evaluate the program and understand the successes, challenges and lessons learned over the course of the pilot. Throughout the project, Blueprint worked with Futureworx to generate evidence through a broad range of qualitative and quantitative data collection activities and furnished a final report articulating their findings and recommendations for future iterations.

Click here to read the final report.

Click here for the full report.

Futureworx is a proud contributor to ABC Life Literacy UpSkills For Work program. The UpSkills workbooks are intended as introductory explorations of the nine skills identified by Futureworx as foundations for success in the workplace. They do an excellent job of helping people develop greater self-awareness about their own skill levels.

For some people, particularly those who face obstacles to getting or keeping work, further steps are needed. These steps can involve actually changing behaviours that impede success. But changing behaviours can be difficult, both for the person and for the facilitators, whose role includes helping people train for and obtain work.

Futureworx has worked to help people overcome behavioural barriers for over 35 years and, with the support of The Counselling Foundation of Canada, has developed a tool that allows these employability skills to be addressed in a client-centred, evidence-based and respectful manner. The Employability Skills Assessment Tool (ESAT) supports the assessment and development of the nine skills and can be adjusted to address other skills needed for a given program or employment sector. Curriculum resources are also available for those organizations who want to take the employability skills journey a little deeper. Click on the link below for more details on ESAT, or contact us at esat@futureworx.ca.

Organizationally, we were consultants on the advisory group for the renewal and modernization of the Essential Skills Framework… now referred to as the Skills for Success. We worked in collaboration with Skills Canada and ABC Life Literacy, and our proud Skills for Success ambassadors.

Skills for Success provides Canadians with everyday skills needed for work, learning and life. Improving them will help you succeed in today’s and tomorrow’s workplace. Everyone benefits from having these skills. They help you to get a job, progress at your current job and change jobs. The skills also help you become an active member of your community and succeed in learning.

Discover the Skills for Success.

To learn more, visit the Government of Canada’s Skills for Success website.