Save The Date: Free Community BBQ Sept. 9 At Richmond Fairgrounds

By Goldie Ghamari, MPP for Carleton

It has been a while since I have been able to host my annual community BBQ. With COVID-19 restrictions behind us, we are now able to celebrate the community, meet new friends, greet old friends, and enjoy some great food and festivities.

The BBQ takes place Sat., Sept. 9 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Volunteer firefighters from Richmond will be manning the grill and cooking up hamburgers and hot dogs, while we will also be serving up cobs of corn and vegetable samosas.

The most entertaining and multi-talented man in all of Carleton, Dr. Kaboom, will be joining us. We will also have a bouncy castle, face painting, and entertainment and activities that will be announced closer to the date.

I also want to emphasize that this is a non-partisan, non-political event. This is an event to celebrate Carleton, and to celebrate our best summer in years.

I hope to see you there!

Ontario Providing Free Training for Construction Workers

The Ontario government is investing $3.6 million to support three innovative projects to help over 2,200 women and young people across Ontario prepare for meaningful and well-paying careers in the construction trades. Led by the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario (PBCTCO), these free programs will focus on increasing female participation in the industry, providing online training tools and exclusive employment opportunities to jobseekers, and giving grade 12 students a first-hand look at life-changing careers in construction.

Women make up less than five per cent of Ontario’s construction workforce, meaning many are missing out on a lucrative and in-demand sector. That is why the first PBCTO project will help 700 tradeswomen gain the leadership, communications, health and safety training, and networking opportunities they need to start and advance rewarding careers in the industry. It will also include the development of a speaker’s bureau to partner tradeswomen with speaking opportunities with schools, employment agencies, trade shows and other events across the province to mentor and attract more women into the skilled trades.

The second project will provide 1,500 people with access to online resources and training tools where they can explore the skilled trades, build core skills and find apprenticeship opportunities in their profession of choice, connecting them directly with local employers. People interested in learning more about unionized career opportunities in the skilled trades can visit www.ctaontario.ca/explore for more information.

Additionally, PBCTCO’s Tomorrow’s Trades program is returning to provide 60 grade 12 students in London and Ottawa with hands-on learning opportunities, behind-the-scenes access to high-profile construction projects and training so they can prepare for life-changing jobs in the industry.

These projects are funded through the government’s Skills Development Fund, an over $700 million initiative, which supports ground-breaking programs that connect jobseekers with the skills and training they need to find well-paying careers close to home.

Quick Facts

• Tradeswomen interested in PBCTCO’s programs can apply on www.OBCTradeswomen.com.
• For more information on the Tomorrow’s trades program, visit https://www.tomorrowstrades.ca/.
• New this year, the Tomorrow’s Trades program is also responding to the current and future needs of the industry by developing a forecasting program to project the number of skilled trades workers needed for all major construction and maintenance projects across Ontario. It will improve the program’s ability to stream young people into high-demand skilled trades opportunities by region.
• Through its first three funding rounds, the Skills Development Fund has supported 596 projects, aiming to help almost 522,000 people around the province take the next step in their careers.
• The Ontario government launched the new $224 million capital stream for the Skills Development Fund on June 30 to support the building of new training centres and the renovation or expansion of existing ones.
• Ontario’s Skills Development Fund is supported through labour market transfer agreements between the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario.
• To help deliver the province’s ambitious infrastructure plans, including building 1.5 million homes, Ontario will need over 100,000 new skilled trades workers this decade.

Ontario Expanding Access to Midwifery Services

The Ontario government is investing $8.27 million for new and expanded midwifery services across the province that will connect thousands of families to faster care in their own community. This funding includes $4.82 million to expand midwifery services in community health centres, hospitals, family health teams and existing midwifery practices, as well as $3.45 million to support future initiatives put forward by health care providers to expand midwifery services in their community.

Services are being expanded in every region of the province and will:

• increase access to low-risk pregnancy and newborn care in both hospital and at home;
• build better integration between midwifery, newborn care and primary care to improve transition through every stage of care; and
• connect people to more culturally appropriate health care options – including traditional Indigenous health services – and improve outcomes.

Starting today, health care providers can also submit proposals to receive funding to expand access to midwifery service in hospitals or through primary health, team-based comprehensive prenatal and postpartum care. Up to $3.45 million is available, including $1.45 million for the province’s Indigenous Midwifery Program, which includes Indigenous Midwives working within interprofessional primary health care teams to expand Indigenous-led midwifery services in urban, rural, northern and on-reserve Indigenous communities.

Through the Your Health Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, Ontario continues to deliver convenient care where people need it most, right in their own communities.

Quick Facts

• The $4.82 million in new and one-time funding is available immediately, supporting midwifery services and Indigenous midwifery programs across the province.
• The $3.45 million, available through the new call for proposals, will continue to support expansion of midwifery services in Ontario, providing more low-risk expectant families with access to midwifery care.
• A call for proposals launched today will provide $2 million for Expanded Midwifery Care Models for community-based midwifery services in hospitals and in primary care team-based settings and $1.45 million to support the Indigenous Midwifery Program models. Applications are available for distribution starting Thursday, August 10, 2023. Please send an email to midwifery@ontario.ca and indicate in the subject line which application you are requesting.

Office Notice:

My office is open Monday to Friday, 9 am to 4 pm. If you require assistance on any matter, please contact me at any time. My staff and I will be happy to assist. Even if it’s not a provincial issue, I’ll make sure to connect you with the proper office.

Goldie

Your voice at Queen’s Park