YELLOWKNIFE (February 19, 2015) – Minister of Education, Culture and Employment Jackson Lafferty announced enhancements to immigration programs in the Northwest Territories today.

“To sustain a strong and competitive economy, grow and diversify the work force and maintain the level of service to which we have become accustomed, this government is committed to increasing the population by 2,000 people over the next five years,” said Minister Lafferty. “Immigration needs to be part of that solution.”

ECE is redesigning and expanding the Nominee Program to provide employers with seamless and expert program delivery, help employers and industry recruit and retain talented workers, and help newcomers successfully integrate to make the Northwest Territories their new home.

Other improvements include the launch of the Northwest Territories Express Entry System for Skilled Workers. The Express Entry System will help employers quickly and efficiently recruit and employ skilled workers when there are no qualified Northerners available.

To improve online service delivery and available information for both employers and job seekers, the JobsNorth website was replaced with Canada’s Job Bank on January 15, 2015. All services previously offered by JobsNorth are available on Canada’s Job Bank with additional services, including job-matching capabilities and bilingual service.

“The Department has been working closely with employers to enhance and expand the Nominee Program to better meet their labour market needs,” stated Minister Lafferty. “We will continue these partnerships to ensure our immigration programs and services remain responsive to their labour market and business needs.”

In addition to contributing to the GNWT economic development and population growth through immigration, ECE has developed an initiative called Skills 4 Success. This initiative will improve skills and training for Northerners to ensure they are prepared to obtain meaningful work in the growing NWT economy.

For detailed information please visit: www.ece.gov.nt.ca or www.immigratenwt.ca.
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Media inquiries:
Jacqueline McKinnon
Education, Culture and Employment
Tel: 867-920-6222
Email: jacqueline_mckinnon@gov.nt.ca