ECO Canada’s Environmental Immigrant Bridging Program, a pilot project funded by the Government of Canada’s Foreign Credential Recognition Program, is distributing $300,000 in wage funding support to employers for hiring newcomers into their first Canadian work experience, in an environmental role. To date, 100% of the newcomers who have reached the end of the program have maintained full-time employment.
This program gives eligible employers up to 50% of a newcomer’s salary (up to $10,000) for a 6-month period in a new, full-time, environmentally related position. It also provides employability training to support the newcomer in their job search and to grow skills desired by employers. The combined funding and training approach helps newcomers break down entry barriers and establish themselves in a long-term career that leverages their skillset and knowledge.
An estimated 22% of the environmental sector will be retiring in the next 8 years, leaving a significant job gap of mid to senior level expertise. Newcomers can provide the skills necessary to fill these gaps and bring a diverse perspective to industry.
This program allows employers to tap into new recruitment opportunities and build capacity within their organization. One of our employers exclaimed, “I love that this program helped me find a candidate with superior credentials and an eagerness to contribute. As a growing team, we constantly struggle to find the right balance between our current resources and our ambitions for growth. This program relieves some of the financial risk of growing our team.” – Melanie Veltman, Director, Research & Data, Environmental Risk Information Services (ERIS)
Many environmental job seekers have come to Canada looking for a new start, but they are left struggling to find work in a field in which they are passionate about and have vast experience. “My journey so far in Canada has been nothing but challenging. However, the support I received through ECO Canada is a massive boost to my morale. The work you do goes a long way in impacting and shaping the lives of newcomers to Canada.” – Hari Pemmaraju, B.Eng., M.Sc.
This employment program was designed to improve opportunities for new Canadians struggling to find meaningful work that is commensurate with their skills and background, and it allows employers to grow their teams with less risk. “This pilot has been such a big success; it has paved the way for newcomers to land great jobs and for employers to receive highly skilled and educated talent that start contributing immediately to their new places of employment in the Canadian environmental sector. It is exactly the kind of programming that the government needs to continue investing in so that newcomers can transition into the workplace much more quickly and beneficial for all of Canadian society,” said Erin Donais, Senior Manager of Training Programs at ECO Canada.
Through this program, we were able to create a comprehensive online training program for new Canadians who are interested in entering the Canadian environmental sector.
To learn more about this program, visit our Immigrant Bridging Program page.
