The Targeted Wage Subsidy (TWS) program is a national employment creation program offered to employers and work seekers across Canada. In some communities, the employer and the work seeker apply for TWS directly with the federal government. In Kamloops and surrounding areas, the TWS program is administered by TQM Consulting through a Contribution Agreement with the government. Hire Power is the office that has been established by TQM Consulting to operate this program.
The goal of TWS is to assist EI-eligible work seekers find employment with employers who may not otherwise hire them without some form of financial assistance. Typically, the employer is seeking such assistance to train and 'integrate' the individual into the employer's everyday business operation in a position in which the individual does not already possess appropriate skills or work experience. Training may be in the form of "on the job" training only, or may involve the employer sending the new employee to formal (institutional) training, or a combination of both. In all cases, the employer negotiates a wage subsidy with Hire Power to help offset these costs. Hire Power reimburses the employer with a percentage of the new employee's wages during that employee's first several weeks or months of employment.
The idea of the wage subsidy is to provide a financial incentive to the employer to hire a "non" turn-key employee. For example, suppose an employer in a manufacturing operation is looking for a new employee. The employer may choose to recruit and hire an individual who already possesses all (or most) of the necessary skills or experience to immediately start doing the work, or may choose to hire an EI-eligible individual who does not already have all of the necessary skills but is willing to train him or her to be successful in that position. In the first situation, the employer might not seek (nor be eligible for) wage subsidy assistance as the newly-hired employee already possesses the skills and knowledge to do the job. However, the employer may be able negotiate a wage subsidy with Hire Power should s/he choose to hire the individual who does not already have those skills. The subsidy is intended to help offset the training costs associated with integrating the lesser-qualified individual into the employer's operation.
Employers from all industries and offering work in all types of occupations may be eligible to receive wage subsidy assistance for hiring an EI-eligible individual For more information, please see our "for Employers" and our "for Job Seekers" pages.
