What do industry-leading employers, engaged youth workers, and talented youth have in common? They were all at #YouthConnect!
There are currently over 80,000 young people in the Greater Toronto Region that are not employed or enrolled in school who could be filling a significant skills and labour gap, as outlined in LinkedIn Canada’s latest Workforce Report. So what’s the problem? Our youth may lack the networks needed to land that first opportunity. With 85% of all hires made through networking, that’s a big problem. To level the playing field, we need to put information about potential career paths and in-demand jobs right at their fingertips. As a pilot of CivicAction’s Escalator: Jobs for Youth Facing Barriers Initiative, YouthConnect brings together youth that face barriers to employment, employment service providers, and employers to equip them with the know-how to help bridge the gap between youth and employment opportunities.
YouthConnect is delivered by the CivicAction Leadership Foundation and LinkedIn Canada in partnership with Ryerson University and the City of Toronto, and with support from our event sponsors RBC and EY.
With nine interactive events since November 2014, YouthConnect has trained 750 front-line youth workers, with the capacity to reach approximately 32,000 youth, as well as over 400 youth and over 100 employers have been trained on 21st century job-search skills.
YouthConnect 2018
What do industry-leading employers, engaged youth workers, and talented youth have in common? They were all at #YouthConnect2018! In July of 2018, over 100 youth workers and 200 youth gathered at YouthConnect to get the inside scoop on hiring trends, online job-search tools and employer needs so they can open new doors to jobs and opportunities.
Couldn’t attend? No problem! Check out our YouthConnect resources where you’ll learn how to make a stand-out online profile, leverage key skills and experiences, and grow your professional network.
YouthConnect 2018 Speakers
Jamil Jivani
2013-2014 DiverseCity Fellow; Author of Why Young Men; and FounderCitizenship Empowerment Project
YouthConnect 2017
On August 18th, over 250 youth workers and youth gathered at YouthConnect 2017 to get hands-on training from LinkedIn staff and other experts on how to connect to people and opportunities online. The youth workers that attended have the potential to teach over 10,000 youth this year alone on how to build and leverage an online network. In addition to training, expert panels and networking, attendees heard from keynote speaker Cher Jones, Social Media Trainer and Personal Branding Expert and Zabeen Hirji, Special Advisor at RBC and former CHRO. Over 20 employers also attended YouthConnect 2017 and learned about youthful solutions to their hiring and retention needs from employers like Starbucks Canada and RBC.
News Release See what attendees said Add the certification Resources
YouthConnect 2016
CivicAction, LinkedIn, the Ryerson University Career Centre, and the City of Toronto hosted YouthConnect 2016 to better connect employers and young job-seekers in the GTHA. By training youth workers and employment counsellors there’s a “multiplier effect” with a potential reach of more than 2,500 youth. To find out more about what happened at YouthConnect 2016, click here. To see it all in pictures, click here.
