If you love to work outdoors, be challenged everyday, and be part of a community, think about a career in the oil and gas industry.

• Full time positions
• Competitive wages
• Complete benefits package
• Career development opportunities

QUALIFICATIONS INCLUDE:

• 18+ years of age
• Flexibility to travel and/or relocation to Alberta or Northern BC
• Good work history/background
• Desire to work outdoors in a physically challenging position
• Class 1 Drivers wanted
• Class 5 Drivers with a clean abstract will be trained
• Able to lift 50-80 pounds repetitively in sometimes challenging outdoor environments and inclement weather conditions
• Successful completion of pre-employment screening
• Career minded
• Desire to learn, grow and succeed

For more information, contact SOS Staffing at 403.457.6120 or oilandgas@sosstaffing.com or apply online at www.sosstaffing.ca

Advertised in the Saturday Nanaimo Daily News: Nanaimo Home Depot is having a Job Fair Friday January 27, 2pm-4pm and 5pm-7pm. Positions available include: Greeters, Lot Associates, Sales Associates, Cashiers, Overnight Freight/Fulfillment Associates and Tool Rental Associates. To expedite the application process, please bring your application confirmation # (ends in Kr) and 2 pieces of government ID. Apply online at www.homedepotjobs.ca/3862

2011 Construction Looking Forward Forecast Reports and Highlights

Fact: During the first period, 2011-2015, the key feature is the expansion of industrial and engineering projects, in particular mining and utility work. These projects drive employment higher for the following key trades and occupations: boilermakers; carpenters; construction millwrights; drillers and blasters; electricians; plumbers; sheet metal workers; steamfitters and pipefitters.

BC Check-Up 2011: Provincial Edition

Fact: BC’s economy performed well in 2010, and the outlook for 2011 is hopeful. In April 2011, BC’s manufacturing sales were up 10.3% when compared to the same time period in 2010. This increase was driven by demand for the province’s exports, particulary within the Asian market.

British Columbia Small Business Profile 2011

Fact: Self-employed individuals – those who spend most of their working hours running their own businesses – are a sizeable part of British Columbia’s workforce. In 2010, self-employment accounted for around 19 per cent of total employment in the province.

Labour Market Experiences of Youth After Leaving School: Exploring the Effect of Educational Pathways over Time

Fact: Does taking time off after high school matter? — By and large, youth who entered directly into the post-secondary system had higher average employment rates and earnings, both initially and several years after leaving school.

Profile of the British Columbia High Technology Sector – September 2011

Fact: Until 1998, BC lagged the other designated provinces, as well as the overall Canadian average, in terms of researchers per 100,000 population. However, since replacing Alberta as the third largest workforce of researchers and technicians per 100,000 persons in 2004, the province has held on to a rank of third. It has since made further advances and has managed to widen the gap between itself and Alberta substantially.

Renewing Canada’s Greenest Workforce: A Labour Market Intelligence Report

Facts: The forest products sector’s ability to recruit new workers is crucial to the sector’s ability to meet replacement and expansion demand over the next decade. Employers reported a number of barriers to recruiting – not enough qualified workers, negative perceptions of industry, a declining rural population and lack of essential skills.

The Value of Tourism in British Columbia (April 2011)

Fact: Tourism is the only primary industry that has maintained steady growth in real GDP from 2002 to 2008, dropping slightly in 2009. In 2009, the real GDP of the agriculture, forestry and mining and oil and gas extraction industries were below 2002 levels.

Thank you to Christian for giving us permission to reproduce his list and summaries on the Career Centre blog.

VIEA Director Rick Roberts says: “The Economic Alliance has been attracted to the concept of the major projects portal from the beginning as it combines a couple of key elements that we are passionate about, that is businesses and communities pooling resources for enhanced economic impact and the facilitation of business to business opportunities on and for Vancouver Island. Put simply, the portal is economic collaboration in action.”

To explore the Portal go to: http://CR.majorprojects.ca. The site profiles supplier databases and information on the John Hart project. Businesses who wish to register their company can find the “Register as a Supplier” box on the Portal Home Page, click on “read more” and follow the prompts. Businesses can view a project’s description and outline, including projected trade requirements and timelines. By making this information available, potentially years in advance of the actual awarding of the contract, local businesses are able to prepare and position themselves as an attractive resource to the prime contractor.

This website will help ensure maximum opportunity for Island-based services and materials contractors to gain business from this and other major projects on the Island in the future.

Tuition and materials are available for participants that meet the criteria of the ESA program. Following are the current programs offered through EAS funding:

Introduction to Culinary Arts Program

This 12-week program will provide students with the skills and knowledge required to fill entry level culinary and food service positions.

Marine Operator Training Program

The participants will gain knowledge and skills that meet the standards as outlined by Transport Canada to work on, and operate a commercial vessel.

Shellfish Aquaculture Technician Training Program

This six week course is for those interested in developing skills and knowledge for a successful career in the shellfish aquaculture industry.

For assistance in developing your education and career goals and to learn more about the ESA program contact The Career Centre at 250-248-3205 to register for an information session.

The WorkBC team is excited to announce three new products available on WorkBC. Check out the Build a Career Smartphone app, Career Explorers video game and Job Trend Tracker forecasting tool. Have fun exploring and share these interactive tools with your colleagues, family and friends!

www.buildacareer.ca

The Build a Career smartphone app features a quiz for young adults ages 15 to 25 to assess their skills and interests and discover new careers. They can also watch videos of the top ten jobs in B.C. and map their way to a career centre nearby. Available on iPhone, Android and Blackberry and in web and iPad versions.

www.careerexplorers.ca

The Career Explorers 3-D online video game lets youth (ages 8 to 12) explore the many career options available in B.C. and its regions. The “roll and move” board game, badges and mini-games provide an interactive and fun experience for players.

www.bcjobtrendtracker.ca

The Job Trend Tracker interactive web application provides reliable labour market information for citizens, employers and government. It’s packed with visual, interactive tools that tell B.C.’s future labour market story. Find demand and supply outlooks from 2010 to 2020 on more than 500 careers in B.C. Map, chart and compare regional and provincial job stats and discover which jobs need workers where. For the best possible experience, we recommend viewing in IE 7+, Safari 3+, Firefox 3+, Opera 9.5+ or Chrome 2.0+.

These tools were created under the federally funded Research & Innovation Support Measures Program.

Following is an update on some of the mines and upcoming projects in B.C.:

The Copper Mountain Mine, 18 kilometres south of the town of Princeton BC has recently reopened by Vancouver-based Copper Mountain Mining Corp. A recent article in BC Business indicates that Copper Mountain will have close to 270 full-time employeees working shifts around the clock. Current opportunities are listed on the Copper Mountain website.

New Afton is a primary development project of New Gold Inc. and is expected to commence production in the second half of 2012. It is located 10km from Kamloops, BC. New Afton will be an underground mine, which will produce an annual average of 75 million pounds of copper and 80,000 ounces of gold over a 12 year mine life. Current opportunities at the New Afton project can be found on NewGold’s website.

Exploration of new mineral properties has also taken off:

In June 2011, New Gold acquired the Blackwater project near Prince George BC. New Gold is hiring geo technicians for the Blackwater project over the next 6 months to work on its active drill program. Successful candidates must be willing to work as part of team at the Blackwater camp on the Nechako Plateau located approximately 160km southwest of Prince George, BC. Qualifications required for this posted position include: High school diploma with previous experience in mineral exploration or relevant industry training; proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Word; ability to work as part of a team in a remote camp environment; team player with exceptional work ethic and attention to details and First Aid training. Employees are required to have a valid drivers license.

Vancouver Island based, Peak Drilling, will be seeking employees for camp work starting March 2012. Interested applicants will be expected to work from the end of April to the end of August. It is long hours of hard physical work and you are in camp for at least 5 to 6 weeks at a time. However, the earnings could be up to $5,000-$8000 month if you have a positive attitude. Resumes can be sent to info@peakdrilling.com.

Following are more websites to check out for mining-related job postings

Careermine – postings for everything from entry level labourers to CEOs in the mining industry worldwide.

Bushrat- a little less formal mostly a place to post resumes for casual jobs.

Kinross – mining company ramping up in North America and elsewhere.

The other larger companies are Rio Tinto, Newmont, Vale Inco and Barrick.

On the island there is Compliance Energy , Pacific Iron Ore Corp and Ridgemont Iron Ore Corp.

For assistance completing a targeted resume and cover letter for these positions phone the Career Centre at 250-248-3205 to sign up for one of our information sessions.