Financial Assistance

Better Jobs Ontario (formerly Second Career) provides laid-off, unemployed individuals with financial support and skills training to help them find employment in high-demand occupations in Ontario. The goal of this program is to help individuals find suitable training opportunities and get started in a new field of work. Their role at VPI is to help job seekers understand and navigate the application process through information sessions and orientation workshops at their local branches.

They say that “We find immense satisfaction in improving others’ lives and pride ourselves on making a positive impact on their educational standards.”

Find an upcoming session in their event calendars.

To find out if the Better Jobs Ontario program can help you get back to work, register for one of their upcoming Better Jobs Ontario events. For more information on the Better Jobs Ontario program, fill out an information request form or contact: 1-888-336-9500.

Program Benefits

Up to $28,000 towards tuition, books, living expenses, transportation and other living and training costs
Additional support may be available to accommodate dependent care, costs of living away from home and academic upgrading

Applications

Before filing your application ensure that you have provided all the details correctly as this will affect your acceptance to this program.
Applicants must be both approved by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development (MLTSD) for Better Jobs Ontario and accepted by an independent training program before funded training can commence.

Training Programs

Applicants must research and select their own training programs. We recommend choosing the programs that they most connect with or have a flair for because then they will remain engaged with the training.

Suitable training programs are considered to be ones that help applicants enter into high-demand industries, such as:

Better Jobs Ontario Eligibility

To be successful with Better Jobs Ontario, you must have a passion to grow and learn. The ability to adapt to a new educational environment and a willingness to make a better future for yourself will take you miles from your current state of uncertainty.

Check out the following eligibility criteria to see if you can benefit from Better Jobs Ontario.

You have been laid-off and have not been working or are working but are underemployed
You have not been laid-off but have been jobless for at least 6 months and are a member of a low-income household

A fast-track stream is available for those who have been laid off due to COVID-19.

You can apply even if you are self-employed, new to Ontario, a gig worker, or receiving social assistance such as:

Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP)
Employment Insurance (EI)
Ontario Works (OW)