The City of Charlottetown also conducted an awareness workshop and an ongoing needs assessment. A project team comprised of the city, unions, government and the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators(CAMA) was formed. Workplace PEI acted as a consultant to the committee. The needs assessment concluded that courses should be offered for personal management skills, communication skills, writing skills, reading skills, math skills and computer courses. The challenges faced by the City of Charlottetown centred around funding issues, finding adequate space, scheduling of programs as well as motivation as many employees have busy lives. The City did secure funding and has offered GED programs, an introduction to computers and workplace math. The City of Charlottetown has received an Institute of Public Administration of Canada ( IPAC) Award for its workplace programs and has secured long-term funding to continue its programs.

The common thread from the instructors of workplace education programs were:

• the instructor needs to be a champion of the program,
• they need to bring their own skills,
• the need to foster better communication skills,
• the ability to provide hands-on teaching,
• the teacher is not a sage on stage, but a guide on the side,
• the programs need to be taught in a safe space,
• use all and any resources available from the workplace, and
• build relationships.

WORKSHOP 4, Bridges to Employment took place on Saturday, October 18, 2003.

This workshop was presented by:
Michelle Brown, Random North Development Association
Jeannine Jessome, Older Worker Initiative Coordinator, Skills &S Learning Branch, Department of Education, NS and
Ian James, Manager, Employment Delivery System, HRDC, Nova Scotia Region.

Bridging the Gap is a community-based education model that helps people with academic challenges to improve their employability skills and personal development by providing them with specific industry skills. The goal of the program is to improve productivity, leading to stronger businesses and economic development, by providing sustainable employment in a manageable time period. The program evolved in response to the Northern Cod Moratorium in Newfoundland and Labrador which displaced thousands of fishers in the province. The economic impact of the moratorium in rural communities was devastating as many people had spent their lives in the fishing industry often learning their skills from their parents and grandparents. The Random North Development Association recognized the need to build the capacity of rural communities with community stakeholders taking ownership.

The Older Worker Pilot Project Initiative is coordinated by the Nova Scotia Department of Education and funded by Human Resources Development Canada. The goal of the initiative is to help older workers re-enter the workforce and maintain employment. The presenters spoke of the challenges encountered by this segment of the population as employers often do not perceive the benefits of older worker participation in the workforce. The presenters made clear that older workers who do not possess key essential skills are at risk due to the new skilled economy. It is critical that older workers are provided the opportunity to upgrade their skills. In Canada, demographics have shown that the workforce is aging. Employers must recognize the broad benefits and necessity of hiring and keeping their older employees. The myth often held by employers that older workers cannot be retrained must be challenged and dispelled. Materials depicting older workers need to be developed to target this population.