Former refugee generating hundreds of jobs for Winnipeg newcomers

WINNIPEG — A new job board is circulating through Winnipeg, with job openings tailored to help refugees in Winnipeg find work.

The new jobs are being generated by Omar Rahimi, a former refugee who moved to Canada from Iraq in 2001. So far the new board has given close to 200 people new to Canada a place to work.

“There’s a lot of jobs in Winnipeg that don’t require a lot of English, you just have to be willing to work,” Rahimi said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "There's a lot of jobs in Winnipeg that don't require a lot of English, you just have to be willing to work," Rahimi said.

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Everything from snow clearing, painting, and construction are all jobs included on the board. Rahimi said he’s using his connections that he’s made over the years, to find a perfect place for refugees to start working in a new country.

“We want to show newcomers how to get a job, how to search for a job, how to keep a job.”

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The job program was started in May 2016, with new opportunities posted regularly.

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The co-owner of Creative Granite Works saw the board posted in a newspaper ad, and decided to contact Rahimi, to fill three full-time positions.

“It’s a trade that not a lot of people teach. It was an opportunity that I thought i could help a few people out,” Dennis Konrad with Creative Granite Works said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's a trade that not a lot of people teach. It was an opportunity that I thought i could help a few people out," Dennis Konrad with Creative Granite Works said.

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One of those people is Wael Jaffel, who moved to Canada from Tunisia three years ago. He said it’s extremely difficult to find a job as a newcomer.

“When I first got here, it took me like four or five months, it didn’t work,” Jaffel said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "When I first got here, it took me like four or five months, it didn't work," Jaffel said.

Now, he’s four months in to his new job as a granite worker.

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“For me this job is like an art. You have to do it right, you have to do it straight, you have to do it beautiful. I really enjoy this job.”

Rahimi said he will be posting more jobs in the near future. He is also planning on launching a job board website for refugees soon.