Job fair held in Burns Lake
A job fair sponsored by the province, the Village of Burns Lake and local First Nations brought 24 participant booths offering 1,307 jobs to the 300 people who attended on Feb. 10.
MLA Pat Bell, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation said all the sawmill workers out of a job now following the fire at the mill were contacted about the fair.
"People were clearly interested," Bell said.
Since many, if not all, of these jobs will mean a commute for locals, the province has agreed to be supportive of a transportation strategy.
"One lesson learned in Mackenzie is keeping people stationary in the community, in spite of a commute, meant retailers, hospitals and schools could all sustain themselves," he said.
Bell, along with Nechako Lakes MLA John Rustad, attended a series of meetings in Burns Lake on Feb. 10, all geared towards economic recovery.
"The job fair was a great opportunity for those looking across the north saying 'what can I do to help out with Burns Lake'," he said.
The MLAs also met with the mayor and village council and discussed a number of initiatives they are interested in pursuing which include developing a tourism strategy and enhancing the visitor centre. The Chamber of Commerce is working on a strategy to encourage people to buy local.First Nations groups are working with Hampton on the security of local timber. Though there are many positive initiatives, Bell said there is still much work to do.
"It's very challenging in the community. There's no doubt about it," he said.
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