Employers

Overview

Co-operative education helps build rewarding partnerships between RRC Polytech and industry – employers benefit from enthusiastic, skilled workers who are ready to contribute, while students gain practical work experience.

Rewarding Experience

Co-operative education rewards your business by:

• Filling your short-term staffing needs economically
• Reducing your recruitment and training costs
• Freeing your employees for higher priority work
• Offering additional resources for special projects
• Providing productive workers during peak times
• Giving you regular input to College curricula
• Helping train your future workforce

Helps Your Business

Co-op students can help your business, as they:

• are well trained in their discipline and have received job search training
• are immediately productive during work term employment and upon graduation
• bring enthusiasm and new ideas and approaches
• are an ideal resource to fill temporary human resource needs during staff leaves or for short-term projects
• can reduce recruiting costs by allowing for the assessment of students for future employment
• allow employers to train and develop students to become productive members of society and potential leaders

Co-operative education work placements must be developed and/or approved as suitable learning situations by the College, and the student’s progress on the job must be supervised by the employer, monitored by the College and evaluated by both the employer and the College.

Work placements must provide students with an opportunity to further develop their skills related to their academic discipline. It is essential that the employer provide supervision to the student throughout the work term and evaluate the student at the end of the work term.

Students are paid by the employer during the work term and the wage paid to the student should be the entry-level wage for the position and in no case can it be less than minimum wage. Each placement must be a full time term position.

Steps to Become a Co-op Employer

1. Determine that you have full time paid co-op employment and resources for a co-op student.
2. Create an account and post the co-op job opportunity on Career Bridge.
3. A work integrated learning coordinator from program area will work with your business to ensure the opportunity meets the needs of the co-op program.
4. Once job posting is approved for co-op work term, co-op students can make applications.  You will receive applications for interview and you select the best candidate for your business needs.
5. Receive confirmation of co-op work term and plan to onboard co-op student, Your business will benefit from a well-trained and highly motivated co-op student employee who can immediately contribute to your business.

Manitoba Paid Work Experience Tax Credit

Find out about the Paid Work Experience Tax Credit in Manitoba and how to process a claim.

Wage Subsidies and SWPP Partners

The Student Work Placement program (SWPP) gives post-secondary students in science, technology, engineering, math (STEM) and business programs across Canada paid work experience related to their field of study. Through the program, employers can apply for wage subsidies to help them hire post-secondary students across Canada. Each partner may have different criteria but the value of the subsidy is constant.

• up to $5,000 for every student you hire through the program
• up to $7,000 for every student you hire that is in their first year or is from an under-represented group including women in STEM, persons with disabilities, newcomers and Indigenous students

Apply for wage subsidies through one of the following Employer Delivery Partners:

1. Technation – Career Ready Program
2. Information and Communication Technology Council – WIL Digital
3. Environmental Careers Organization of Canada – Wage Subsidy Program for Environmental Students
4. Biotalent Canada – Student Work-Integrated Learning Program
5. Electricity Human Resources Canada (EHRC) – Empowering Futures: Developing Electricity Talent Through Work-Integrated Learning
6. Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MiHR) – Gearing Up: Developing Mining Talent Through Work-Integrated Learning
7. ECO Canada Student Work Placement Program
8. Magnet Student Work Placement Program
9. Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium
10. Trucking HR Canada
11. Tourism HR
12. Talent Opportunities Program