Minister Blackburn to recognize the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council for excellence in promoting immigrants in the workplace

TORONTO, July 9 – The Honourable Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Minister of Labour will be in Toronto on Thursday, July 10, 2008 to recognize the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) for its successful work with employers in promoting the inclusion of immigrants in the workplace.

What: Minister Blackburn to recognize TRIEC
When: Thursday, July 10, 2008, 1:30 to 2:30 pm
Where: Manulife Financial, 200 Bloor Street East, 12th floor dining room

The event will be hosted by Manulife at their global headquarters in Toronto. Manulife has actively supported TRIEC since 2003, with President and CEO, Dominic D’Alessandro, and Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs and Human Resources, Diane Bean acting as council co-chairs. Manulife is also a strong supporter and funder of TRIEC’s Mentoring Partnership program.

“TRIEC is committed to finding solutions to immigrant underemployment that benefit both employers and immigrants,” said Elizabeth McIsaac, executive director of TRIEC. “TRIEC encourages employers to look at the benefits and value of international experience. We work to foster collaboration across all sectors on this issue, and we are pleased to see the federal government recognizing the value of this work.”

“Immigrants are needed to sustain our economy and stay competitive, both locally and globally,” said Jennifer Rowe, Manulife’s vice-president of corporate affairs, who will be present at the recognition ceremony. “This is why Manulife’s leadership has encouraged governments and other employers to think hard about how we can better include immigrants.”

TRIEC is working to find solutions to better include skilled immigrants in the labour market, while at the same time helping organizations benefit from the skills and talents immigrants bring with them to Canada. Since 2003, TRIEC has facilitated collaboration among a diverse group of stakeholders including employers, post-secondary institutions, employment service providers, immigrants, regulatory bodies and all three levels of government.

For more information on the work of TRIEC visit www.triec.ca.

For further information: (media only):
Lillian Manea, TRIEC, (416) 944-1946;
Michael Winterburn, Office of Minister Blackburn, (819) 953-5646;
Media Relations, Human Resources and Social Development Canada, (819) 994-5559

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