Summer Career Placements 2006 - Applicant guide - Ontario

The Summer Career Placements (SCP) initiative is delivered by Service Canada on behalf of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSD) and is designed to assist students in preparing for their future entry into the labour market. The Initiative provides career-related work experience to students through the provision of wage subsidies to public, private and not-for-profit employers to create summer employment opportunities for students from 15 to 30 years of age (inclusively).

If approved, the SCP Application (EMP 3699) will become the Agreement between the employer and Government of Canada. Therefore, it is imperative that all documents, including the SCP Articles of Agreement and this Applicant Guide be carefully reviewed and understood prior to the signing of the application, by the person(s) with legal signing authority to do so.

CRITICAL DATES

The 2006 Summer Career Placements Campaign is closed. The application deadline date was March 31, 2006 except in Northwest Territories and Nunavut it was April 7, 2006.

To apply for SCP funding, you must complete the SCP Application/Agreement (EMP 3699). All applications must be submitted to the local Service Canada Centre (SCC) on or before the above deadline date.
BY MAIL: Applications must be postmarked by Canada Post Corporation. The deadline date for the postmark is March 31, 2006.
IN PERSON: Applications must be received by hand by your local SCC before office closure on March 31, 2006.
BY FAX: Applications submitted by fax must be received by the local SCC no later than March 31, 2006. Original documents must be sent to your local SCC before a contribution agreement is approved.

If your application is approved, the first three pages of the Application/Agreement will be returned to you by mail. Please retain the Articles of Agreement as they are an integral part of the agreement and they will not be returned to you.

NOTE: In 2007, the SCP application deadline date may be earlier. The information will be posted on the following Internet site at www.servicecanada.gc.ca.

Dates of Operation:
Service Canada will not reimburse for the period of employment prior to the approved project start date indicated in the SCP Application/Agreement form signed by Service Canada.

The latest project start date is Monday, July 24^th, 2006.
The latest project end date is Saturday, September 2nd, 2006.

ELIGIBILITY

Eligible Employers: Not-for-profit, private and public sector employers are eligible for funding and must be a legal entity, registered with the Canada Revenue Agency. Some restrictions apply to Public Sector employers. Preference will be given to small and medium size employers (less than 500 employees). Aboriginal bands may also be considered for funding. “Ad Hoc” groups and committees are not eligible unless they can demonstrate they are a legal entity. Self-employed students wishing to hire themselves are not eligible for funding.

Eligible Participants: To be eligible for SCP, participants must:

be between 15 AND 30 YEARS OF AGE (INCLUSIVELY) at the time of intake/selection;
be registered as full-time students in the previous academic year, and intend to return to school on a full-time basis in the next academic year;
be students in a secondary, post-secondary, vocational or technical program, but not attending full-time classes while participating in their SCP placement;
be Canadian citizens, permanent residents or persons on whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act;
be legally entitled to work according to relevant federal and provincial/territorial legislation and regulations; and
not hold another full-time (30 or more hours) summer job during their placement.

CRITERIA AND PRIORITIES

Basic Initiative Criteria: All applications MUST demonstrate that:

The jobs created will not interfere with a collective agreement already in place (union concurrence must be supported by written documentation from the union(s) concerned, where applicable);
The job is for a minimum of 30 hours per week and does not exceed 40 hours per week (exceptions may apply for students with disabilities), and is between 6 to 16 consecutive weeks in duration;
Each job must be filled by only one student; and
Jobs do not involve personal services to the employer (i.e. gardening, domestic services, childcare services, etc).

National Priorities: Applications should demonstrate career-related employment objectives in at least one of the following areas:

Supporting organizations who target students facing barriers to employment, including students with disabilities and immigrant youth.
Supporting organizations that deal with youth facing barriers to employment, including youth with disabilities, youth at risk of homelessness and immigrant youth.
Key sectors in regional and local economies.
Occupational areas where skills shortages exist.

Local Priorities: These reflect local conditions and needs, and are determined by the local SCC.

Application Assessment Criteria: Jobs described in the application will be assessed against the following criteria:

a. the potential for the job(s) to provide a career-related experience;
b. the potential of the job(s) to prepare students for future labour market participation;
c. the wage contribution the employer is prepared to make towards the proposed jobs;
d. the extent to which the proposed jobs address one or more of the national/local initiative priorities, as listed above;
e. the quality of administration and management of the project;
f. the promotion of health and safety in the workplace; and
g. the extent to which the participant will be provided with necessary supervision.

NOTE: Due to the popularity of this program and local budget restrictions, all applications may not receive approval for funding. Those approved may not receive funding for all positions and costs they request.

Job Postings: Employers receiving SCP funding are strongly encouraged to use the services of their local Service Canada Centre for Youth, formerly called Human Resource Centres of Canada for Students, for the recruitment of students.

PARTICIPANT WAGES

Minimum Wage: As of March 31, 2006, the adult minimum wage for Ontario will be $7.75 per hour. All students must be paid at least the adult minimum wage for Ontario.

SCP Wage Contributions:

Private Sector: Up to 50% of the minimum wage per hour

Public Sector: Up to 50% of the minimum wage per hour

Not-for-Profit Sector: Up to 100% of the minimum wage per hour. Not-for-profit employers are also eligible for reimbursement of the Mandatory Employment Related Costs (Employment Insurance, Canada Pension Plan and Vacation only) associated with the minimum wage. As well, not-for-profit employers may be eligible for up to $100 for overhead costs where required and when local SCC budgets permit.

Mandatory Employment-Related Costs (MERCs): For application calculations for not-for-profit employers or employers wishing to hire a student with a disability, the following rates can be used to estimate these costs:
11.57% of gross wages

Employment Insurance 2.62%
Canada Pension Plan 4.95%
Vacation 4%.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Special note regarding students with disabilities: Employers hiring a student with a disability through SCP may be eligible to receive up to 100% of the minimum wage for Ontario. Additional funds may be made available for accommodation requirements for students with a disability, to a maximum of $3,000 per student. This would cover the costs of personal tools/adaptations that the student would need for their own use on the job.

Workplace Safety & Insurance Board (WSIB) must be provided by the employer for SCP participants in accordance with and where required by provincial regulations. This is a mandatory condition for funding. All SCP employers are required to apply for WSIB or equivalent coverage for all SCP students. WSIB may be an eligible cost calculated under the MERCs category for not-for-profit organizations.

Employers must observe all applicable federal and provincial health and safety laws and advise students of their rights and obligations related to health and safety issues, including those pertaining to workers’ compensation or equivalent insurance coverage. The employer must inform Service Canada in writing of any injury suffered by the SCP participant while carrying out the job.

Approval Process: All applications will be assessed and prioritized at the local SCC based on initiative eligibility and assessment criteria, national/ local priorities and budget availability. All employers will be notified after all applications are assessed. If approved for funding, employers will receive a copy of the SCP Application/Agreement form signed by Service Canada with instructions on payment claim procedures and project monitoring.

Payments: Reimbursements will be issued to employers upon completion of their agreement. Employers must submit a claim for actual hours worked by the student and any other eligible costs during the agreement period. Not-for-profit sector employers may also be eligible for advances when requested.

Final claims must be received by the SCC within 30 days upon completion of the agreement.

For further information refer to the Service Canada web site at www.servicecanada.gc.ca or contact your local SCC.

If you would like a confirmation of the receipt of your application, please complete the Acknowledgement Card. Print the Acknowledgement Card and include it with your SCP Application.

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Click here to access and fill out the application form
(Complete application, (11 pages - including Articles of Agreement) must be printed on legal size paper.)

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