Days after Mayor Ed Holder’s Jobs Task Force declared a jobs crisis in London, a new website has been launched with the goal of connecting local job seekers and employers.
The task force said Wednesday that London has the worst employment rate in the country, not because of a lack of open positions but because the ones that are vacant can’t seem to be filled.
It says employers and potential employees are having trouble connecting with each other.
On Friday, the Mayor’s Office announced the site, Londonjobsnow.ca, which corrals job postings for cities across the region every hour from more than 20 job boards. The board was inspired by a similar initiative in Windsor.
“They had drastic employment issues there and they needed fixing. As a result of creating this jobs board as a tool and the awareness associated with it — and rekindling interest amongst those Windsor folks who had effectively given up looking because it seemed futile — they had another tool and employers got enthused as well,” Mayor Ed Holder told 980 CFPL.
“You know, in the last six months, they’ve added 13,000 jobs to the Windsor economy. That’s huge!”
The London-area website is described as “the Trivago of jobs boards,” as it scans more than 20 area jobs boards hourly to pull postings into one location. A release says the London Jobs Now is the largest jobs board in the region and also offers an innovative map that allows users the option of browsing where in the city jobs are located. The map allows the option of overlaying nearby transit routes, child care, and other services.
“We know that part of the reason we have so many not employed is that London attracts many students, as well as thousands who need our health care and social services expertise,” said Holder.
“The other reason, and the more concerning one, is that thousands of our residents who need work have become discouraged and have stopped searching. They need help connecting to jobs. And that’s where this new site can assist.”
The jobs board was developed by the Elgin-Middlesex-Oxford Workplace Planning and Development Board with support from partners including the City of London and provincial government.
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