May 20, 2021

Big New Grant!

Value:

Eligible employers applying for the grant may receive funding equal to 25 per cent of the employee’s annual salary, up to a maximum of $25,000 per new hire, whichever is less. If the new hires have a disability, the employer is eligible for a grant up to 37.5 per cent of the employee’s annual salary, or up to a maximum of $37,500, whichever is less. An employer can apply for a grant for up to 20 new hires each time the program is open for applications. Choose to have payments issued in 1 or 2 payments:

- 1 payment: up to 100% of the grant after new hires have been employed for 52 weeks
- 2 payments:
  - half of the eligible grant paid when the new hires have been employed for 3 months
  - the other half paid when the new hires have been employed for 52 weeks

Description:

Private sector businesses and non-profit organizations across all industries can apply for funding to reduce the costs of hiring and training unemployed or underemployed Albertans. Additional funding is available for hiring persons with disabilities.

Eligible Employers

Employers must:

Be incorporated (for businesses and some non-profit organizations), have a registered Trade Name (for sole proprietors) or be registered under (for non-profit organizations) an act of the legislature of a province or the Parliament of Canada for at least one year.
Be located and operational in Alberta.
Be hiring for new or vacant full time positions for at least 52 weeks.
Provide safe working conditions, be in good standing and comply with the Employment Standards Code, Occupational Health and Safety Act, Workers’ Compensation Act and all other applicable legislation and regulations.
- Good standing is defined as: Workers compensation premiums are paid; no outstanding Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) convictions; and/or any Employment Standards orders are resolved.
Have met or currently meet all obligations to the province under previous grant agreements.
For sole proprietors, the following documentation must be provided.
- Sole proprietors with coverage under the Workers’ Compensation Act must submit a Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB-Alberta) clearance letter.
- Sole proprietors in a WCB-Alberta exempt industry under the Workers’ Compensation Act must submit the following:
  - A WCB-Alberta exempt industry letter; and
  - A copy of their federal payroll deductions or GST Registration.

Ineligible employers

Federal, provincial or municipal governments
Public sector or publicly (government) funded organizations (public post-secondary institutions, schools, school boards, hospitals, health authorities, etc.)
Political parties
Provincial or federal Crown agencies, boards and commissions or corporations
Businesses and organizations that are not in operation for the 52-week duration of the grant.
Businesses and organizations have not been incorporated or registered for at least a year.

New Hire Eligibility

Eligible new hires

As part of Alberta’s Recovery Plan, we are creating jobs and getting Albertans back to work. Under the Alberta Jobs Now

Program that means creating opportunities for businesses to create jobs. Eligible businesses will be able to hire new employees that meet the following criteria.

New hires must be:

An unemployed individual. This also includes an individual employed in a part-time position at a company other than the employer applicant (average of fewer than 30 hours per week.)
A new hire of the employer.
- New hires must be hired on or after program launch date.
- The start date for new hires can be no longer than 120 days from the application approval.
- New hire information must be submitted within 30 days after the eligible employee’s date of hire.
- A previous employee of the employer can be considered a new hire, provided they have not been working for the employer applicant, part or full time for the past 90 days.
Resident of and will be working in Alberta during the grant period.
A Canadian citizen, a permanent resident or protected persons under the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, who is legally entitled to work in Canada.

Hiring persons with disabilities

Under the Alberta Jobs Now Program, persons with a disability are defined as: persons who have a physical, mental, sensory, intellectual, or learning impairment, which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their labour market participation.

Employers can find resources and information about recruiting and hiring job-seekers with disabilities by visiting the Hiring Persons with Disabilities: Getting Started page of the Alberta Careers, Learning and Employment Information (ALIS) website. ALIS also includes a link to the Government of Canada for tools to make workplaces inclusive.

Employers can also visit the Government of Canada’s Job Bank, Recruit persons with disabilities page to post job ads for free

on Job Bank and market them to interested persons with disabilities.

Ineligible new hires

Previous employees who were purposefully terminated or laid off by the employer to receive the Alberta Jobs Now
Program grant
Individuals who leave their current full time position to move to another full time job
Company owners or directors/board members of the employer applicant or self-employed individuals cannot apply for the grant to fund themselves
- Immediate family of the company owner or director/board member or self-employed individual:
Immediate family members includes but is not limited to; spouse, common-law partner, adult interdependent
partner, child (biological, step, adopted), parent, sibling
Current and previous employees who have worked for the employer in the past 90 days
Any person who was a previous participant in the Alberta Jobs Now Program for the same employer
Any person who is not a resident of or will not be working in Alberta during the grant period
Contractors
Full time self-employed individuals
Temporary Foreign Workers, or anyone temporarily working in Canada