A person walks past closed businesses on Spadina Avenue in Chinatown in Toronto on May 13, 2021.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
Ontario is launching a new integrated system of employment services it says will make it easier for residents to restart their careers.
The province says it will be combining the employment services offered under various social assistance programs, such as Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program, in order to make the process easier to navigate.
It says the program will include online self-serve options as well as phone and in-person services.
The new system, called Employment Ontario, is set to take effect in nine new areas next year, and in additional areas after that.
The government says a prototype version has already been in place in three regions -- Peel, Hamilton-Niagara and Muskoka-Kawarthas -- since last year.
Ontario’s unemployment rate has risen to 9.3 per cent as of last month, up from the pre-pandemic rate of 5.5 per cent, according to the province.
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