Chamber working to help Ukrainian refugees find jobs in Greater Victoria

Greater Victoria’s business community has a well-deserved reputation for its compassion and generosity.

The Chamber is hearing from members who want to help people fleeing the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“We’re connecting with our national chamber network and have reached out to the federal minister of immigration,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said. “We want refugees arriving in Canada to know that Greater Victoria is a welcoming community.”

Canada has approved more than 91,000 of the 204,000 applications it has received through the Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel process. Less than 2,000 will likely be re-located to Vancouver Island. However, those that do will need housing and, in many cases, jobs to help them integrate into our community.

The Chamber is working with our community partners to identify potential opportunities for billets or temporary housing. Employers in Greater Victoria can help by posting any job openings to a special federal job bank for Ukrainian refugees.

“We know many of our members have opportunities for skilled workers and we will do everything we can to try and provide stability for Ukrainians who have been forced to flee their homeland through no fault of their own,” Williams said.