Canada Ontario Job Grant

Contact our Continuous Learning funding experts to determine your or your organization’s eligibility for the Canada-Ontario Job Grant.  We can customize programs specifically for your organizational needs. Contact us for more information.

New funding rules effective April 01, 2017, for employers with 50 or fewer employees, who are training and hiring unemployed individuals are eligible to receive up to $15,000.00 per trainee and are not required to make a minimum contribution to the training costs for training funded through the grant. Employers can receive 100% funding for Unemployed Individuals up to $15,000.00 per trainee.

The Canada-Ontario Job Grant (COJG) provides direct financial support to individual employers or consortia who wish to purchase training for their employees. The COJG program is a partnership between the federal and provincial governments to fund employer-driven training initiatives. The government covers 2/3 of the direct training costs up to $10,000 per trainee and employers are required to contribute 1/3 of the direct training costs. 

It is available to small, medium and large businesses with a plan to deliver short-term training to existing and new employees. Important to know:

• Employers can get up to $10,000 in government support per person for training costs.
• The training has to be delivered by an eligible, third-party trainer.
• Employers with 100 or more employees need to contribute 1/2 of the training costs. Small employers with less than 100 employees need to contribute 1/6 of training costs.
• Employers with less than 50 employees have the option to contribute up to 50% of their required contribution in wages paid to train participants.
• For employer groups who want to apply for training support, the government offers a COJG Consortium Stream. The Consortium Stream allows a group of employers (two or more employers) to pool their resources to support common training objectives and goals. To apply as a consortium, the intermediary organization needs to ensure all the participating employers and trainees meet COJG requirements, and are able to make their required contribution towards the training cost.
• Most organizations acting as an intermediary are eligible for administrative funding equal to 15% of the government contribution.

The COJG's purpose is to build skills in the workforce, training should support employees in obtaining more transferable knowledge, skills & abilities. Funds available in this program have been prioritized for those applications that show employee training that will create a new position, avoid layoff, lead to sustainable year-round employment, or show increased wages for the trainee.

Applications will be assessed on an ongoing basis by the ministry and service providers. A consistent framework will be used to assess and prioritize all applications based on the strategic priorities for the COJG. Continuous Learning is a qualified training provided under the following categories:

• Supporting unemployed individuals
• Supporting job creation
• Increased job quality
• Job Advancement

Training supported through the COJG is driven by employer demand and must be directly related to the skill needs identified by the employer. Employers identify the types of training required to meet their skill needs and the individual(s) who will be trained. Training must not exceed one year (52 weeks)  in duration and must be provided by one of the following third-party providers: