North Battleford is taking its pitch for more workers to Toronto, as the city plans to recruit workers to the area at the National Job Fair and Training Expo.
The city has obtained a booth at the job fair Sept. 27 and 28, where they plan to promote job opportunities available in the Battlefords and help recruit new employees.
In preparation for the job fair, the city has been gathering information from employers interested in participating in the recruitment efforts in Toronto.
North Battleford held an employer information session Thursday afternoon at the Battlefords Immigration Resource Center, an informal come-and-go session where employers could find out some more information and possibly get involved.
"We're going to tell them what we're able to do for them while we're there, and the information we need from them if they want to partner and help promote the city and the real opportunities they have locally here," said Denis Lavertu, city director of business development.
Both Lavertu and Jennifer Niesink, program manager for Battlefords Immigration Resource Centre, will be at the job fair. There was also plenty of opportunity for local employers to send a representative to join them at their booth space.
That will allow them to make their pitch directly to potential employees and there was the opportunity for them to be able to pre-screen potential candidates on site. Lavertu said it would be the employers who "reap the benefits directly" by going to the show, because they can pre-screen and conduct interviews on site.
The other option for local employers who were unable to send a representative was to provide the list of specific needs their local company has so that it can be made available at the job fair. That way the city can provide information to job seekers about what's available and the qualifications needed, wage and salary ranges, relocation packages if available, type of required certifications and key contact information.
Lavertu said that he had been contacted a number of employers already interested in getting involved.
"We should have quite a few partnerships," said Lavertu.
There has been interest from Prairie North Health Region as well as some of the industrial businesses, and even from businesses looking for specialized personnel.
The National Job Fair is the largest job fair in Canada, with 7,000 to 11,000 job seekers attending.
Lavertu said that typically, the average job seeker has three years experience in their field, and a wide variety of fields are represented- from health care to welders and production workers.
Local recruiters also attend the fair, but "it's a good way for other groups in other provinces to do inter-provincial recruitment," said Lavertu.
Lavertu says the event represents a great opportunity to let people know there are positions available, needing to be filled. In particular, the trades, especially welding, have a huge shortage of workers right now, said Lavertu.
Prairie North also plans to provide information on what kind of health care workers are needed and what positions need to be filled.
"My role, really, there will be to promote the Battlefords as a place to live and work," said Lavertu, who will also be assisting in linking people to business opportunities or jobs in the Battlefords.
With her background in human resources, Niesink will be there on contract to help with pre-screenings and make connections with employers.
As part of his role, Lavertu intends to sell the quality of life in the Battlefords to those who might not be so familiar with the community and who might seek information about what it is like there.
"There's going to be a lot of questions about cost of living, there's going to be a lot of questions about the quality of life and those sorts of things, so we have information on that," said Lavertu.
He fully intends to pitch job seekers on the proximity of the Battlefords to the lakes and the new recreation facilities, as well as brief commuting times.
"Instead of an hour and a half, it's more like five minutes," said Lavertu.
