190,000 Canadian jobs saved
According to Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, the objective to create or save 190,000 jobs the Canadian government set itself in January should be reached. He believes that despite the recession, many employees were able to keep their jobs, thanks to improvements to employment insurance, more particularly the extension of the work-sharing program.
jobWings.com named a Top 100 job board
Canadian job board jobWings.com, specializing in finance, accounting and management, has just been selected as a Top 100 job board. The ranking was carried out by WEDDLE’s, a U.S.-based human resources research, publishing, consulting and training firm, for its 2009/10 Guide to Employment Sites on the Internet. The site selection methodology was based on information submitted by the sites on their features, services and fees, as well as information provided by job seekers, employers and recruiters who have used the sites. In addition, each site was visited to assess its user experience and level of maintenance.
Volunteering to save your company
In an e-mail, British Airways has asked its almost 30,000 employees to work for free for one to four weeks in a bid to help solve the company’s woes. To set an example, the CEO announced that he would forgo his salary for July, and the CFO promptly followed suit. This initiative is part of a recovery attempt, and is accompanied by many other measures, such as part-time work or unpaid leave when employees request it.
Geoservices launches game on Facebook
The oil services group has created a game on Facebook called "The Oil Conquest Challenge" to promote its employer brand and recruitment. The company wants to hire 1,000 new employees worldwide and created a global event to attract potential candidates. The main profiles sought are young graduates specializing in geology, physical measurement, chemistry, and mechanical and electrical engineering.
Pitney Bowes: setting the example with an empowering health policy
Mailstream technology company Pitney Bowes has created a "culture of health" program to incite its employees to take their health seriously, with a view to reducing absenteeism:
- Reimbursement or free distribution of medication
- Balanced meals
- Timely diagnostics and screening
- Nutrition education and stress management programs
- Gym memberships at reduced rates
Taleo celebrates its 10th birthday
This June, HR software publisher is celebrating its 10th anniversary. The little Quebec start-up, founded in 1999, has grown enormously since then. As a provider of ASP-based talent management solutions, Taleo’s clients include a third of the CAC 40, a third of the Global 100 and over 3,400 small- and medium-sized businesses all over the world.
Free job fairs to give European employment a boost
It’s a European first: at the end of May, Monster announced the launch of a series of free career fairs, aiming to designed to link employers and job seekers. The initiative, titled “Keep Europe Working,” will start in June in France and the Netherlands. Four cities in each country will host the tour, which will continue throughout the European Union. Many other fairs have already been planned for September and October in Germany and the U.K. The approach is based on the “Keep America Working” tour, launched in March 2009, which will visit more than 140 stops by December 2009. How about a “Keep Canada Working,” eh?
Pay equity extended in New Brunswick
Pay equity between women and men will soon be extended to the entire public service of New Brunswick, with the tabling of a draft law at the end of May by Shawn Graham’s Liberals. The current law provides for pay equity only in government departments, while the new law should apply to the rest of the public service, including schools, hospitals and Crown corporations like New Brunswick Power. In addition, it will apply to groups of employees that are at least 60% women. According to Minister Schryer, the government could then extend it to the parapublic sector, which includes childcare centres and nursing homes.
Public sector jobs steady since 2001
According to Statistics Canada, public sector employment reached 3.6 million in the first quarter of 2009, a year-over-year increase of 2.1%. Since 2001, the proportion of public sector workers has nevertheless remained steady, and accounted for 19.7% of total employment in 2008.Between 2001 and 2008, over half of job growth in the public sector occurred in Ontario, mainly in local public administration: a third of public sector employees worked in Ontario. Meanwhile, Alberta posted the highest growth rate of all the provinces, at 5% for 2007 and 2008.