New National Biotech Training Programs to Support Youth Employment

OTTAWA, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BioTalent Canada launched its new national online training program: “Essential Skills Fundamentals for the Canadian bio-economy" today. The training program has been developed to address skills gaps identified by both post-secondary institutions and Canada’s fastest-growing bio-economy employers.

The courses will be available to hundreds of students and employer participants from BioTalent Canada’s Student Work Placement Program (SWPP) and other wage subsidy programs in both English and French online. The courses were funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program.

Bio-economy employers have long identified an essential skills and knowledge gap in new bio-economy employees, as discussed in BioTalent Canada’s most recent Labour Market Information research brief “The Talent Differential: The case for work-integrated learning in the bio-economy.”

“As the Canadian biosciences sector continues its rapid growth, it’s imperative that the workforce—and new hires—remain current and skilled” says Rob Henderson, President and CEO of BioTalent Canada. “A result of our partnerships with academia and employers, these courses will serve as a natural complement to work integrated learning programs, like our Student Work Placement Program (SWPP), to successfully transition young talent to the bio-economy workforce.”

“Essential Skills Fundamentals” provides job seekers, employees, students and new hires with essential skills to integrate seamlessly into the work environment. The program includes the following independent training courses:

• Introduction to the Bio-economy
• Essential Reading Skills for the Bio-economy
• Essential Writing Skills for the Bio-economy
• Essential Numeracy Skills for the Bio-economy
• Essential Document Use Skills for the Bio-economy

Students will have the ability to complete pre-and post-assessments for each component of the program and upon successful completion, will receive BioTalent Canada’s BioReady^TM designation for Essential Skills Fundamentals to give them an edge in the job market.

“Our goal is to deliver highly effective professional development that employers want and that will give companies across Canada’s bio-economy confidence to employ young talent,” explains Henderson. “Essential Skills Fundamentals will allow new hires to onboard faster and existing employees to enhance their business skills.”

For more information on the “Essential Skills Fundamentals Training Program,” please visit biotalent.ca/essential.

Funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program.

About BioTalent Canada

BioTalent Canada™ is the HR partner of and catalyst for growth in Canada’s bio-economy. Our engagement with employers, associations, post-secondary institutions, immigrant serving agencies and service providers has built a dynamic network that is strengthening skills, connecting job-ready talent to industry and creating opportunities. Recently awarded a Great Place to Work® Certification, BioTalent Canada practices the same industry standards they recommend to their stakeholders.

Recently, BioTalent Canada was named one of Best Workplaces in Ontario for 2020 and Best Workplaces in Healthcare. These distinctions were awarded to BioTalent Canada following a thorough and independent analysis conducted by Great Place to Work®. Direct feedback from employees was provided to Great Place to Work® through a staff survey.

For more information visit biotalent.ca.

About BioTalent Canada’s Bringing Essential Skills to The Bio-Economy Labour Force Project

To address interpersonal skills shortages in the Canadian bio-economy through the development of a unique curriculum for these essential skills lacking in the bio-economy workforce. BioTalent Canada will pilot this curriculum to 250 individuals through an online learning platform to traditional and emerging biotechnology clusters identified by our recent labour market research.

About the Student Work Placement Program

The Student Work Placement Program is an initiative to increase the job-readiness of students registered in STEM, healthcare, business programs and all other programs at Canadian post-secondary institutions. The program offers student wage subsidies to a maximum of $7,500.

For more information, visit biotalent.ca/Co-opFunds.