Post-Secondary Employment Program (P-SEP)

The Post-Secondary Employment Program for Nonprofits (P-SEP) is a pilot project that provides a wage subsidy to nonprofit employers in Edmonton and Northern Alberta to hire recent post-secondary graduates not currently employed in their field of study. The project runs from November 2010 until March 31, 2011.

The wage subsidy amount is to a maximum of $15 per hour. Employers must demonstrate a financial investment toward wages.

Employers

• Must be a registered nonprofit society based in Edmonton or Northern Alberta.
• Will hire a recent post-secondary graduate for a full time position within their organization for a minimum one year commitment.
• Must financially commit to providing a fair, market-value wage for the position.
• Will release their employee to undergo an assessment of employability skills with Bredin Institute.
• Will participate in the creation of an employee development plan based on the employee's assessment and the operational needs of the position and the organization.
• Agree to provide post-secondary graduates with a minimum of six hours coaching/training within the first six months of employment, based upon operational needs and the outcomes of the client assessment.
• Employers are responsible for the recruitment and hiring of the post-secondary graduate employees according to their internal hiring processes.

Post-secondary graduates

• Must be a graduate of a post-secondary institution. This includes any public university, college, or technical institute in Alberta, as well as at any private institution or vocational school accredited by Alberta Advanced Education and Technology (or equivalently accredited schools outside Alberta) from which the graduate has received a recognized undergraduate degree, applied degree, diploma, certificate or licence.
• Must be less than 30 years of age.
• Must be legally entitled to work in Canada.
• Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or person on whom refugee status has been conferred.
• Must not be in receipt of Employment Insurance Benefits within the past three years.

Upon identification of an individual who meets the program eligibility criteria, the organization is invited to submit a completed application to the program administrator, Mandie Abrams at workplacestrategy@ecvo.ca. We recommend you contact ECVO before submitting an application to ensure that basic eligibility requirements are met.

Upon approval, the organization will complete an agreement with ECVO identifying the terms of the wage subsidy and the reporting requirements.

The organization and the post-secondary graduate employee will enter into a legal and binding employment contract prior to the disbursement of funding. Funding will be transferred to the employer monthly, based upon actual expenditures and having met agreed upon conditions.

Completed employer applications will be accepted and vetted through an approval committee. The approvals committee includes a cross section of nonprofit leaders from Edmonton and Northern Alberta. These expert advisers will review all applications and select applicants to participate in the project.

Approval criteria will include:

• Date of submission.
• Full completion of application and submission of supporting documentation.
• Employer and client eligibility.
• Demonstrated financial commitment of the employer and their ability to sustain the position beyond the term of the wage subsidy.
• Strategic and operational relevance of the employment position within the organization.
• The employment position's ability to enhance the skills of the recent post-secondary graduate in their field of study.
• Availability of P-SEP funding.

P-SEP has an open application process, with applications approved on a first-come first-serve basis. We highly recommend you contact ECVO prior to submitting an application to make sure the eligibility requirements have been met. If you application is approved, you will be notified immediately.

The length of time associated with the term "recent" has not been defined. There is flexibility in the length of time since the individual graduated, as long as the individual has not been successful in finding work related to their field of study. If your application is complete and meets all other criteria, it will be considered.

Post-secondary institutions include any public university, college, or technical institute in Alberta. This also included any private institution or vocational school accredited by Alberta Advanced Education and Technology (or equivalently accredited schools outside Alberta) from which the graduate has received a recognized undergraduate degree, applied degree, diploma, certificate or licence.

You cannot use the wage subsidy towards the salary costs of an existing employee in their current position. If all other criteria are met and you are willing to transfer an employee into a position that relates to their field of study, your application will be considered.

For example: if you have a post-secondary graduate working as an administrative assistant and they have a marketing degree, you could promote them to a marketing position within your organization. In this case, we will consider your application.

Due to limited funding we will only be able to approve one subsidy per organization.

ECVO has managed to secure a funding commitment for the P-SEP project up until March 31, 2011. At this time all approved agreements will come to an end. ECVO will be working with Service Canada to extend this program beyond March 31, 2011. If we are successful, employers will be encouraged to apply for supports for recent post-secondary graduates entering their organizations at that time. Existing agreements will not be extended.

We understand that employee/employer relationships do not always work out. If this happens to an employer approved under the P-SEP program, we will terminate your agreement and the funding allocated to your organization will be re-allocated to another eligible nonprofit.

One of the objectives of this project is to assist post-secondary graduates in their transition to the workforce. As a result, the P-SEP program includes supports for the post-secondary graduate to assess career objectives, employability skills, and gaps or areas for improvement. Employability skills are the critical skills needed in the workplace. They include communication, problem solving, positive attitudes and behaviours, adaptability, working with others, and science, technology and mathematics skills.

Employers will provide paid release time for the employee to undergo an assessment with career placement experts at The Bredin Institute. It is expected that this assessment will take approximately two hours and will be conducted in-person if in Edmonton or via phone if outside of Edmonton. Based on the assessment, The Bredin Institute will develop an assessment report identifying any employability skills training needs. The report will be signed by both the participant and their employer.

In addition, Bredin will deliver a professional development plan with identified learning solutions and timelines. These learning solutions may include workshops, conferences, formal or informal coaching or other solutions as identified by the employer.

All training or skill development activities are at the discretion and expense of the employer, but P-SEP eligibility requirements include the willingness and ability of the employer to invest in a minimum of six hours coaching/training over six months based upon operational needs and the outcomes of the client assessment.

Employers must agree to invest a minimum of six hours coaching/training over six months, based upon operational needs and the outcomes of the client assessment.

It is up to the employer to prioritize the kind of training they want to provide for their employee. Training may include workshops, conferences, formal or informal coaching, mentoring or other solutions as identified by the employer. If the employer chooses informal coaching or mentoring, they must be able to track and report on the learning outcomes of those activities.

Employers will be required to report on salary expenditures for the employee on a monthly basis. Employers will submit a P-SEP Financial Summary Report and backup documentation in the form of a cost-leger report or copies of pay stubs. Upon receipt of financial reports, ECVO will release payments to the employer.

In addition, the monthly report must include a short narrative report highlighting training activity and including proof of training activity.

The funding is from Service Canada's Career Focus program. ECVO will administer these funds.

For more information please contact:

Mandie Abrams
P-SEP Program Administrator
308, 10310 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5J 2W4
Ph: 780-421-1660
Fax: 780-428-1930