More than $1.3 million from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario (FedNor), will support workforce expansion and population retention efforts across Northern Ontario.
On Friday, Patty Hajdu, minister of jobs and families and minister responsible for FedNor, announced that a portion of the funds — $959,500 — will be for the Northern Policy Institute to help communities attract and retain newcomers by improving access to data, strengthening local immigration initiatives, and promoting regional collaboration.
Hajdu said that through this project, the Northern Policy Institute will help collect population data and provide analysis to communities and provide advisory services to places participating in immigration pilot programs such as the Francophone Community Immigration Pilot, Rural Community Immigration Pilot, and Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program.
She said the remaining $345,000 will enable the Northern Policy Institute to identify and analyze leading practices in newcomer retention through a process of direct interviews and surveying of program participants of the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) program, employers, service providers, and community members.
She added that comparative analysis of non-RNIP communities and RNIP communities outside Northern Ontario will further enhance understanding of what drives successful retention.
“It’s really to support the work, which has been really wildly successful, of all these immigration pilots,” she said. “It’s to make sure that they have the data that they need as they move forward. They can measure the impact of the attraction of newcomers here, what they’re doing in terms of keeping people, look at what other jurisdictions are doing and identify if there are things that we can learn from them.”
While the Northern Policy Institute will maintain population growth portals for the regions of Northern Ontario, it will also develop a mobile app to support newcomers in integrating into their new communities.
“The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot, that’s been facilitated by the Community Economic Development Commission, CEDC, has been a real asset to employers,” Hajdu said.
“And what’s great about an approach like that is that it’s not just an influx of newcomers without attachment to the community, but it’s employer-driven. Employers work with the CEDC, they apply to get one
of the spots, and then they’re able to fill that spot with a newcomer, and the supports for that newcomer are in place so that that person not only gets the job, but gets settled into the community in a way that hopefully retains that person and their family.”
She added that it’s really about trying to grow our population in a sustained way that meets the needs of employers, and that leads to success for the community.
Jamie Taylor, CEO of the CEDC said Immigration is a critical component of Canada’s workforce strategy. In Thunder Bay, it supports business continuity, fills essential labour gaps, strengthens the tax base, and contributes to long-term economic and population growth.
“Under RCIP, eligible sectors include business, finance and administration; health; education, law and social services; sales and service; trades and transport; and manufacturing and utilities,” Taylor said. “These sectors reflect current labour market gaps identified by local employers and align with federal program guidelines.
She said Northern Ontarians are not filling the job gap because Thunder Bay, like many communities, is experiencing demographic shifts, including an aging workforce and lower population growth.
“While local recruitment remains a priority, there are not enough available workers to meet current and projected demand across key sectors,” she said.
