Training program for older workers accepting applications until Aug. 31

Training program for older workers accepting applications until Aug. 31

WHITEHORSE—In 2016, Heather McIntyre was between jobs.

“I left the company that I had been with for 33 years, and I didn’t want to just jump into the next thing,” she said. “I always thought I might want to go back to school, but I was at a bit of a loss.”

She heard about Yukon College’s Targeted Initiatives for Older Workers (TIOW) Program, which offers unemployed people between the ages of 55 and 64 training and support in entering or re-entering the workforce. McIntyre took the program from January to April 2017, and soon after she was hired as the Executive Director of the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre.

“The program was a lovely and very positive experience overall,” she said. “It helped me to craft my resume and to navigate the hiring systems of other businesses and organizations. It also reminded   me that people can still learn and contribute, and be very capable at any age.”

In addition to developing skills such as upgraded literacy, first aid training, and computer training, the program gives learners access to new social networks and builds self-esteem.

More than 500 students have graduated through the program since it began 15 years ago, then called the Older Workers’ Program. Sixty percent of those student go on to find employment or continue their educations.

“Our students connect to resources that they may not have been aware of, and their lives change,” said Instructor George Green, who has been with the program since it began and wrote its first curriculum. “They have improved health; they build confidence, and they make friends and have fun—we definitely think learning should be fun.”

While enrolled in the program, students receive a stipend for each hour they spend in class, volunteering, or working at a job placement

“It’s a popular program because you can take the classes and still have an income,” said Green. “Funding can be a barrier to participation, and we want to make it as welcoming as we can.”
The fall semester begins September 11, and runs for 13 weeks. The deadline to apply is August 31.

For more information please visit: yukoncollege.yk.ca/programs/view/targeted_initiative_for_older_workers