Changes in employment services prompt transformation
Transforming employment services to ensure the best possible employment services for job seekers and businesses.
The existence of three separate employment systems – Employment Ontario, Ontario Works Employment Assistance and ODSP Employment Support —has long created challenges for job seekers and employers accessing services. The government saw this as an opportunity to create a more locally responsive employment services system that delivers better employment outcomes for individuals regardless of their needs.
In 2019, as part of the government’s mandate to make Ontario open for business, the Ministry of Labour, Training, and Skills Development announced plans to transform employment services to ensure the best possible employment services for job seekers and businesses.
The primary goals behind the employment services transformation are to reduce fragmentation and duplication between provincial employment systems, improve client service, increase accountability, and achieve better outcomes for all job seekers and employers. Changes to the delivery model also support local responsiveness and system efficiency. The system recognizes that individuals with higher or unique support needs, including social assistance clients, people with disabilities, and Indigenous and francophone clients, need access to timely services that better meet their needs.
Within the Employment Services Transformation framework, the ministry no longer has a direct association with service providers. Instead, it has a relationship with service system managers, who, in turn, oversee individual service providers in their catchment area(s). Providers offer various services to job seekers within their catchment area.
In the updated service delivery framework, starting in 2020, Stride established an association with WCG Services in Peel and, from 2023 onwards, with Fedcap Canada in Halton. The oversight of all services has been consolidated under the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development.
As a Specialist Disability Service Provider, this transformation necessitates significant adaptation to Stride’s service delivery, including training, program development, staff restructuring, technology adoption, evaluation, monitoring, communication, and financial management. These changes have required a comprehensive change management process and continuous quality improvement initiatives to ensure that services are effectively tailored to the needs of each client.
The result will be a more efficient and responsive employment service that better addresses the needs of all clients, aligns with local labour market demands, and drives positive outcomes for job seekers, employers, and communities. It signifies a concerted effort by the government and service providers to improve the employment landscape in Ontario and support economic growth and social inclusion.