Helping newcomers succeed in Canada's workforce by connecting them with employers
Landing a suitable job that matches their training and skill set not only helps immigrants and refugees successfully settle into a new life in Canada, it also helps ensure a more prosperous and inclusive future for the country.
ACCES Employment serves as a “connector” between job-seekers and employers, filling labour gaps and helping newcomers gain employment - often before they even arrive in the country.
ACCES (Accessible Community Counselling and Employment Services) Employment President and CEO Allison Pond said the non-profit settlement organization works closely with employers to address shortages in health care, skilled trades and other professions.
“We can’t help people find employment or overcome barriers if we don’t also work with companies,” she said. “We have to know what the needs of employers are; we need to understand them and we have to be able to serve those employers.”
What started as a small organization with nine people about 35 years ago has grown to become a major match-maker, with 260 employees working with about 3,800 companies in various sectors and in communities across the country. In addition to direct employer engagement, stakeholder and employer advisory groups identify industry needs and bridge them with job-seekers.
The organization now serves about 42,000 clients each year. With more than 85 per cent of them being newcomers to Canada, ACCES Employment also provides pre-arrival services to support immigrants succeed in their new job and life in Canada.
“We’ve always worked with industry and with businesses and we’ve grown over decades our ability to engage employers and companies in what we do. But at the same time, we are in the settlement sector, working to help newcomers, refugees, people who are struggling to find work, helping them to integrate into the labour force. We see ourselves as a connector.”
Allison Pond, President and CEO, ACCES Employment
The global pandemic exposed significant labour and skill gaps and underscored the need for more immigrants and refugees to sustain Canada’s social infrastructure, including health and long-term care systems.
ACCES Employment serves as the broker between employers and that much-needed talent.
“This is our moment. This is when we need people, but to integrate successfully: That is key. Everyone knows the stories of engineers coming and driving cabs. It’s been our mission to make sure engineers become engineers,” Pond said.
“A big part of it is making sure people are getting into jobs that reflect their skills and their abilities.”
ACCES Employment provides a range of services, from facilitating quick security clearance for an airport worker or helping an entrepreneur launch a new business to breaking down barriers for immigrant women to land senior management positions or work in fields such as technology and cybersecurity.
“We’ve always worked with industry and with businesses and we’ve grown over decades our ability to engage employers and companies in what we do,” Pond said. “But at the same time, we are in the settlement sector, working to help newcomers, refugees, people who are struggling to find work, helping them to integrate into the labour force. We see ourselves as a connector.”
The bridging organization also works with smaller and rural employers to help build diverse, strong and inclusive communities so immigrants don’t need to flock to big urban centres like Toronto or Vancouver to get a job.
ACCES Employment has received sponsorship for projects from large companies such as Accenture and TD Bank. It also works with federal and provincial governments to provide critical supports that facilitate incoming streams of people with targeted skills for a diverse Canadian workforce and an inclusive, prosperous future.
Pond says ACCES Employment aligns with primary objectives of the Coalition for a Better Future, which produces a scorecard of 21 internationally-recognized metrics to track Canada’s economic and social progress.
“I look at the indicators and I see where the work our organization does crosses a number of them. We are bringing in a diversity of talent, people who have experience working in international markets,” she said.
