MORE JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR ABORIGINAL PEOPLE

Today's Aboriginal Employment Development Program (AEDP) partnership agreement between the Saskatoon Public School Division #13, the Saskatoon Tribal Council, and the province will have a significant impact on future Aboriginal participation in the workforce.

Through the program, the Tribal Council and the School Division will work together to encourage students to finish high school and go on to further education and training so they will be able to compete successfully for jobs of their choice. As well, the school division will prepare its workplace for the inclusion of more Aboriginal employees.

"Our goal is to achieve a workforce that is representative of the people of our province," Aboriginal Affairs Minister Maynard Sonntag said. "As a result of the Aboriginal Employment Development Program there have been more than 1,700 Aboriginal people hired and over 4,000 people have participated in cultural awareness training. Partnerships such as this are an important step toward the full and equal participation of Aboriginal people in our province – socially and economically."

"We are entering into this agreement to build stronger relationships with the Saskatoon Tribal Council and the Aboriginal community to ensure that our workforce is representative of our community," Dan Danielson, chair of the school division, said. "We also hope to build strong links with Aboriginal training institutions about employment requirements in the school division and to provide cultural awareness training on Aboriginal issues for our employees."

"The partnerships the Saskatoon Tribal Council has been forming are an integral piece of our vision to work with the non-Aboriginal community," Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Glenn Johnstone said. "We see this partnership as another step toward an inclusive working relationship with the Saskatoon Public School Division."

The Saskatoon Public School Division #13 represents over 44 elementary schools, eight high schools and serves approximately 22,000 students. This school division is the first in the K-12 system to sign on with the Aboriginal Employment Development Program.

The Saskatoon Tribal Council consists of seven First Nations Bands with a total population of more than 10,000 members.

The AEDP strives to build a representative workforce in Saskatchewan where Aboriginal people compete for jobs based on their skills and qualifications, and are represented at all occupational levels in proportion to their population numbers in the province.

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For More Information, Contact:

Anna Arneson Government Relations and Aboriginal Affairs Regina Phone: (306)787-8008