Help, counselling is around the corner for young West Island jobseekers
Non-profit provides resumé, interview tips, information and employment workshops
Finding a job can be a daunting task for any West Islander, but it’s especially challenging for young people who don’t have a lot of work experience.
That’s where the Carrefour jeunesse emploi de l’Ouest-del’Île comes in. The Pointe-Claire based non-profit organization is mandated to support people age 16 to 35 in their job quest. It provides CV and job-interview tips, job-search assistance and guidance counselling as well as encourages entrepreneurship and offers workshops.
With summer fading in a few weeks, many young people will head back to school and look for part-time work. Others will search for full-time employment.
With that in mind, the Carrefour is hosting an open house Thursday and invites job seekers and parents to find out about the various programs and services on offer. Carrefour councillor Marie-Ève Gosselin said there will also be information for immigrants who can struggle to find employment.
The open house will also have activities, door prizes, some on-site employer recruitment — and free pizza.
“Sometimes it’s easier to find a job in the summer, so they don’t need help that much,” Gosselin said. But for young people not returning to school this fall, or waiting for an open spot in a program, the Carrefour has counsellors to help them look for a job or find ways to flesh-out their educational options, she added.
“We’re always there (year round) to help them but the open house is an occasion to allow the community to learn more about us. Even if it’s not to apply for a job (now),” Gosselin said. “They (may) have questions or parents of young students who don’t know exactly what we are doing (may have questions).”
Keeping West Island youth from potentially seeking greener pastures elsewhere means providing employment opportunities as well as access to affordable housing.
Last fall, as part of a housing forum hosted by the Table de quartier sud de l’Ouest-de-l’Île, it was noted there is a shortage of first-time buyer options for young professionals in the West Island, particularly in municipalities along Lac St-Louis as well as Kirkland and Senneville.
“We see (that) when they graduate they move out of the West Island because they can’t afford to stay (on their own) in their home communities,” Alena Ziuleva, the director TQSOI, told the West Island Gazette last fall.
While the Carrefour is not a job-placement agency, it provides useful guidance for youth wishing to get their foot in the door in the workforce.
“We give them the tools (to apply for a job). We’re not doing the job for them,” Gosselin said. “They learn how to do a resumé or how to write a cover letter.”
The Carrefour jeunesse emploi de l’Ouest-de-l’Île open house will be held Thursday, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at 225F Hymus Blvd. ( just west of St-Jean Blvd.), Pointe-Claire. akramberger@postmedia.com Twitter.com/akramberger1
Keeping
West Island youth from potentially seeking greener pastures elsewhere means providing employment opportunities as well as access to affordable housing.