Women's Employment Centre (WEC)

Corporate body

Women's Employment Centre (WEC)

• Women's Employment Counselling Centre (WECC)
• Women's Employment Unit

1981-1997

The Women's Employment Centre (WEC), located in Toronto, operated as part of the Canada Employment and immigration Commission (CEIC) and began under the launch of the Women's Employment Counselling Centre (WECC) Pilot Program in 1981. In this pilot program, seven employment centres with a particular focus on women's employment were opened in seven different cities across Canada as part of regular Canada Employment Centres in each city—Halifax, Chicoutimi, Toronto, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Winnipeg and Calgary. WEC was created to assist women in entering the labour market and/or making major occupational changes, especially in non-traditional occupations (occupations that are predominantly male), such as trades, technology and operations (TTO).
The Women's Employment Counselling Centre (WECC) Pilot Program was evaluated in 1984 by Employment and Immigration Canada (the Program Evaluation Branch) and continued to operate throughout the 1990's. Many women who received advice and guidance from the WEC in Toronto were subsequently hired at various companies and organizations throughout Ontario including CP Rail, the Ministry of Transportation, CN, Toronto Transit Commission, the Toronto Star, and more. WEC eventually closed down in 1997 due to minimal support and a difficult political and economic climate within the Human Resource Development Canada (HRDC).
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Le Centre d'emploi des femmes (CEF), situé à Toronto, faisait partie de la Commission de l'emploi et de l'immigration du Canada (CEIC) et a vu le jour dans le cadre du programme pilote du Centre de conseil en emploi des femmes (CCEF) en 1981. Dans le cadre de ce programme pilote, sept centres d'emploi axés sur l'emploi des femmes ont été ouverts dans sept villes différentes du Canada, dans le cadre des Centres d'emploi du Canada habituels de chaque ville : Halifax, Chicoutimi, Toronto, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Winnipeg et Calgary. Le WEC a été créé pour aider les femmes à entrer sur le marché du travail et/ou à opérer des changements professionnels majeurs, en particulier dans les professions non traditionnelles (professions à prédominance masculine), telles que les métiers, la technologie et les opérations (TTO).
Le programme pilote du Women's Employment Counselling Centre (WECC) a été évalué en 1984 par Emploi et Immigration Canada (Direction générale de l'évaluation des programmes) et s'est poursuivi tout au long des années 1990. De nombreuses femmes ayant bénéficié des conseils et de l'orientation du WEC à Toronto ont par la suite été embauchées dans diverses entreprises et organisations de l'Ontario, notamment CP Rail, le ministère des Transports, le CN, la Toronto Transit Commission, le Toronto Star, et bien d'autres encore. Le WEC a finalement fermé ses portes en 1997 en raison d'un manque de soutien et d'un climat politique et économique difficile au sein de Développement des ressources humaines Canada (DRHC).

Toronto, Ontario

The Women's Employment Centre functioned within the Human Resource Development Canada (HRDC) as part of the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission (CEIC). WEC's overall objective was to provide women with information, advice and access to community resources in the hopes of aiding women in the labour market, whether it be helping women find jobs or improve upon their current position. The pilot program began with an interest/focus on three specific groups of women; this includes: (1) women over the age of 25 who are entering the labour market for the first time; (2) women returning to the work force after being absent for one year or longer; (3) and employed women wanting a change from their current occupation/career, particularly in non-traditional fields.
A major function of WEC was counselling, and an important means of achieving this aim had been through Group Information Sessions, conferences, meetings and workshops.

Gleaned from material within the fonds.