Enhancing Employment Programming for Vulnerable Youth

Authors:Boris PalametaLily KaufmannCourtney LordAshley PullmanWendy LeeAudrey AppiahAndrew CanningShayne Sanscartier

In 2017, the Government of Canada committed to renewing its youth employment strategy, part of which involves a renewal of Skills Link with more focus on at-risk youth and additional investments to increase the planned participant intake. The Government has also committed to continue improving the way it serves the needs of youth including helping understand what’s working and to encourage good program practices. In coordination with ESDC’s Office of Literacy and Essential Skills (OLES) and youth employment branch, SRDC developed a multi-staged four-year project to both explore improvements in employment programming for vulnerable youth and to pilot test a Pay-for-Performance model for incentivizing innovation and best practices among service providers. The first phase in year one will involve a comprehensive review and re-analysis of employment programming as part of Skills Link along with a series of consultations with providers of youth programming to document strengths in existing delivery, best practices, and any gaps and opportunities for innovation. The second phase will involve the design and implementation of a demonstration project to test a Pay-for-Performance model to incentivize innovation and best practices. The demonstration phase will span three years and will involve up to 600 youth from across Canada.

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Project Details

Capability: Survey Design and Data Management - Experimentation - Program Evaluation/ Performance Measurement - Data Sciences
Policy Area: Youth Development and Inclusion, Adult Training - Workplace Training - Employment Supports and Services - Literacy and Essential Skills - Employment Programs
Population: Low-skilled Workers - Students - Youth
Start Date: November 2018
Completion Date: March 2023
Sponsors: Employment and Social Development Canada | Applied Research Branch

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