The Canada-Ontario Job Grant: What Is It?

If you are a small to medium-sized business, you don’t have to let the cost of training courses hold yourself and your employees back. There are many government funding grants such as the Canada Ontario Job Grant (COJG) which supports businesses in providing training and upskilling opportunities to employees. 

Canada-Ontario Job Grant: Upskill The Workforce

As every employer knows, their workforce is their best asset. While all businesses might want to give their employees the best opportunities to upskill and learn new knowledge, one thing that has been holding small to medium-sized companies back is the cost of employee training. We understand. Factoring that kind of financial resources into your annual budget can be tough especially if you are a relatively small business.

 However, there are government grants that companies can avail of to overcome this obstacle. The Canadian government has long understood the importance of keeping the workforce trained and skilled in order to keep the economy competitive while helping employers and employees reach their goals. 

What Is The Canada-Ontario Job Grant (COJG)? 

If you are an employer in Ontario, one such government grant that you can avail of is the Canada-Ontario Job Grant (COJG). But, what exactly is it? This is an employer-driven training initiative which offers financial assistance and support to the owners of small to medium-sized businesses that offset the cost of purchasing training course for employees. 

You might be wondering how exactly this fund works. Well, let’s talk about it. If accepted to participate in this training grant program, the Government will split the cost of training in half with the employer on up to $10,000 per employee. However, if your business consists of 100 employees or fewer, you can then access additional financial support which would mean that the employer pays a ⅙ of the cost, while the Government covers the rest.

If your company has more than 100 employees your business is eligible for 50% of the cost, up to a maximum of $10,000 per employee. 

How Can I Apply For A Training Grant Program For My Business? 

Next, it is important to look at exactly which training grant programs are available to your business under the COJG. There are two streams of employer categorization that can avail of this funding: single employer and employer consortiums. 

Single-Employer

Individual employers that are in the private or not-for-profit sectors are able to apply for the COJG fund through the single employer stream. Those employers must meet a number of eligibility criteria and requirements which include but aren’t limited to: 

• Make cash and in-kind contributions towards training costs
• Be licensed to operate within Ontario
• Be applying for training that is delivered in Ontario and is in relation to a job that is carried out in the same province
• Employ the individual(s) selected for training
• Comply with the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and the Employment Standards Act
• Must maintain appropriate Workplace Safety Insurance
• Must have adequate third-party general liability insurance
• Must comply with all applicable provincial and federal human rights legislation 

Employer Consortiums

A consortium is another option for employers who are looking to partake in this Ontario training grant. Employer consortiums refer to an organization that acts on behalf of a group of employers such as a union training hall, industry associations and training coordinators. 

For the purpose of the Canada-Ontario Job Grant program, they consider a consortium to be an organization that has been given formal permission to represent a group of employers that are willing to pool their resources together to support and achieve common training goals. 

In order for an application through a consortium to be accepted, all employers must be eligible under the same requirements listed for single employers. 

Benefits Of The COJG:

Employee training has the ability to lead to increased productivity, job satisfaction and morale among staff. As an employer, when you proactively provide your employees with opportunities for them to upskill and develop within their career, they will prove to be more loyal to the company and be more respectful of their leaders. 

By applying for COJG funding, you will be able to access the employee training opportunities that large corporations and enterprises avail of on a regular basis. Yet, you will be able to do this at a much more affordable cost. 

Accessing training opportunities in this way will ensure that your employees will have the skillset they need to grow alongside your company. With the option of applying for Government funding on a yearly basis for training purposes and the success rate that it provides, why not take advantage of COJG?  

Applying For The Canada Ontario Job Grant

Training Company is an approved third-party training provider. Let us help you upskill your team.

Here at the Training Company, we work alongside business owners who are interested in providing training courses for their employees. We can provide a quote on a training plan which you can review and use in your grant application.

The COJG can help fund your employee training with us at Training Company. Once your grant is approved, we will coordinate your required training courses with our team of expert training facilitators.

Interested in seeing what courses we have on offer? Contact us now!