The Ministry is also responsible, through the Youth Office, for supporting and co-ordinating Youth Options BC programs which are sponsored and delivered by other provincial government ministries and agencies. These programs are described below. The program helps young people get the experience they need to get work and to keep on working by assisting employers through a wage-sharing arrangement. Employers are provided with a reimbursement of 50 per cent of the provincial minimum wage for a maximum of 360 hours to help offset the time and costs of training a young person.
Employers provide the rest of the wage.
It is a partnership program involving the provincial government, youth, high technology firms, public libraries, schools and other community members. The provincial government provides conditional grants to public libraries and community schools to enable them to hire youth as summer community internet trainers. Youth who are hired through the program work with sponsoring libraries or schools, corporate mentors and the community to help local youth learn internet skills and to develop web sites of interest to young people. The E-Team program, managed by the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, gives youth training and experience working on environmental and outdoor recreation projects. Work Crews complete projects such as building sections of the Trans Canada Trail, maintaining and enhancing provincial parks facilities and planting interpretive gardens.