Anne Ramsay, executive network director of Project Read, said jobs are shifting drastically, and older workers need to train for positions in the new digital economy.
She points out that Project Read can help them connect with the training they need in Waterloo Region and Wellington County – training they’ll receive free of charge.
“Older workers who lost jobs they worked at for decades are finding it harder than ever before to find employment – especially those who worked in the manufacturing sector,” she said.
Ramsay said skills required for employment have changed in the past 10 years especially with more and more technology on the job.
She pointed out free training programs are available during the day and evening – part-time and full-time – tailored to each person’s specific needs.
The Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) training provides a vital foundation for skills training, apprenticeship and post-secondary education leading to employment in the new digital economy.
“Last year, 25 per cent of the people who accessed LBS training were 45 years of age and older. Many of these people had been laid off from local plants in Kitchener, Cambridge, Guelph and Fergus,” she said.
“They were able to increase their skills and get other jobs.
Ramsay said one of the big struggles now for local programs is to support laid off workers who have exhausted their severance and Employment Insurance benefits looking for comparable work, and are now on Ontario Works.
Ramsay says that along with contacting Project Read via email at info@projectread.ca, older adults can also download the Project Read app directly from links on their home page http://www.projectread.ca/.
The Project Read Literacy Network of Waterloo-Wellington was founded in 1988. It’s devoted to promoting literacy issues and programs to the community, bringing literacy practitioners together, and improving service delivery.
