I hope that you have enjoyed a happy, relaxing, summer with your family and friends. With the excitement and anticipation associated with the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year, students, parents, and school staff will be focusing on renewed learning opportunities and a return to more regular routines. Together, we can use our best efforts to support our youth as they develop their skills and confidence, and gain independence. Alberta’s government is helping students gain hands-on skills by supporting Calgary Economic Development’s new work-integrated learning (WIL) pilot program. This investment is the latest initiative that will bring more work-integrated learning opportunities to students across our province. 2030: Building Skills for Jobs strategy is a transformational vision and direction for Alberta’s higher education system. The goals are to develop a highly skilled and competitive workforce, to strengthen innovation and commercialization of research, and to forge stronger relationships between employers and post-secondary institutions. Students gain critical workplace experience from industry experts through work-integrated learning placement, while employers gain access to the talent they need to grow their businesses. Job placement through the program can be offered as co-ops, internships, applied research projects, or field placements. Since 2019, Alberta has been leading all provinces in knocking down barriers to internal trade and labour mobility. Alberta has eliminated 85% of all exemptions to the Canada Free Trade Agreement, by far the most among all provinces. The Alberta government passed the Labour Mobility Act that speeds up certification of professional credentials for Canadians coming to work in Alberta. Currently, Canada has a patchwork of thousands of different provincial regulations that hinder business and add costs for consumers across the country. Alberta is commissioning a research study that will examine mutual regulator recognition and its potential in Canada. This report is due to government in September.
Please contact my constituency office should you have comments or questions to share with me.
Mike Ellis, MLA Calgary-West
MLA – Calgary West Mike Ellis proudly serves the following Communities: Aspen Estates, Aspen Woods, Christie Park, Discovery Ridge, Signal Hill, Springbank Hill, Strathcona
