The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

8 stouflville suntribune thursday jan 25 2007 school board asks business how to get students ready for job market tackling youth job gap staff photosjoerd witteveen shyne valliani left and joanna french of the york region district school board are using this website to bridge the gap between unemployed youth and businesses that cant find skilled workers they are visiting stouflville firms by chris traber staff writer high youth unemploy ment skilled labour shortage something just doesnt add up its a paradox york regions public school board hopes to solve by bringing together employers and unemployed youth through a fivemonth program towards tomorrow a fed erally funded initiative administered by york youth wants to survey businesses to find out what industry wants from workers between 15 and 30 who now face a 12 per cent unemployment rate our goal is to raise awareness of this very real social and economic issue york youth employer out reach consultant and stouf- fville resident joanna french said one in four between 25 and 30 who have either a register animal care equine medicine diseases sick tired of being sick tired skin care equine nutrition spring cleanse detoxification business computer literacy history series brock township excel 1 camp x microsoft office certificate durhams first nations gardening series- four season container landscaping your home eldon mariposa home children scugog stouffville uxbridge for all your choices and course descriptions visit wwwdurhamcollegecaconed to register call now 9058527848 or 18004613260 low maintenance organic gardening timelines calendar healthy living colour healing foot care for the nonprofessional freedom from dieting languages french 2 spanish 2 life leisure astronomy painting acrylics oil renewable energy degree or diploma are cate gorized as under employed making less than 20000 annually all the while 83 per cent of employers are experienc ing shortages of skilled labour this short supply applies to a diverse sector from police officers to chefs from press operators to millwright mechanics electricians to woodworkers she said ms french a former markham public school trustee hopes the employer survey answers some per plexing questions- the survey available online and in print asks employers how to better pre pare youth and young adults for the labour market now and in the future the group wants to collect a minimum of 100 surveys by march 31 were looking for employers across york region who represent the different economic sectors from manufacturing the service sector industrial and retail ms french said survey results will be made available to all employ ers who complete the ques tionnaire as well as to youth employment agencies and services the project will focus on creating job opportunities for youth increasing employer outcomes and demonstrat ing the benefits of hiring young people outreach con sultant shyne valliani said we have noticed that youth dont have the right tools and knowledge to find jobs for themselves she said employers are reluctant to hire youth who lack in experience they cant get the experience its a catch 22 the program wants to send youth and employers a clear message employers should give youth a chance and youth have to find out about pro grams that can help them find work ms valliani said employers should give youth a chance and youth have to find out about programs that can help them find work after data is collected the organization will consult with community groups boards of trade chambers of commerce elected officials employers and service agen cies towards development of the final report we need to hear the employers voices ms french said york youth provides employment support and referral service for people 15 to 30 years old who are out of work and out of school those receiving employ ment insurance may be eligi ble for self employment training and other programs 77ie survey can be accessed and completed by visiting wwwyorky- outhca printed versions are available by calling 9057705494 ext 343 ipwf iip 1p fifclhonie landscape ontario titanium exclusive cookwaic