25,200 Young People to be Employed Under Summer Work Programme

The HEART Trust/NTA is looking to engage 25,200 young people this year under its Youth Summer Employment Programme.

This is a significant increase over the approximately 6,000 persons who were employed in 2016.

In an interview with JIS News, Senior Director for Community Services, Youth Services Division, HEART Trust/NTA, Rayharna Wright, explained that with the merger of the National Youth Service (NYS) with the agency on April 1, 2017, the budget for the programme was increased to accommodate a larger number of young people.

The Youth Summer Employment Programme is an intervention targeting youth attending secondary and tertiary institutions who need some meaningful work experience.  Graduates, who are unemployed, can also apply.

The programme is open to young people aged 17 to 29 and persons from the community of persons with disabilities between the ages of 17 and 34.

Interested persons are being asked to submit a completed application form, along with a passport-size photograph; résumé; Tax Registration Number (TRN); valid national identification; valid school identification; birth certificate; and proof of qualification, if there is any.

“No longer are persons required to have a minimum of three Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subjects to participate in the programme. It is now open to all young persons who are eligible to apply to the programme,” Ms. Wright informed.

She noted that more than 80 per cent of applicants are placed within the public sector.  However, there has been an increase in private-sector participation.

“We have a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, and a lot of their members have come on board, along with other entities that are outside of the PSOJ,” she told JIS News.

She noted that the employer status of the programme has been extended to include engaging the young people in community summer schools or camps.

Ms. Wright said it is important for more private-sector entities to participate, as “it is not just employing these persons for three weeks but it is a national contribution to these young people, who some of these organisations will be employing in the future”.

Meanwhile, the deadline for application for the programme has been extended to Friday, May 26.

The initiative will be undertaken in three phases over three weeks, starting June 5;   July 3; and August 8.

For further information and application forms, persons can call or visit the HEART Trust/NTA head and regional offices or visit their website at www.nysjamaica.org.