FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 26, 2020
MASSE SUPPORTS CODING FOR VETERANS CARAVAN ON BEHALF OF WINDSOR VETERANS
(OTTAWA, ON) Today, Windsor West MP Brian Masse met with the Coding For Veterans (CFV) Career Caravan which is beginning it’s mission to bring our troops from “deployment to employment,” even in the face of COVID-19, with a stop in at HMCS Bytown in Ottawa. The primary goal of the caravan is to harness the skills and experiences of veterans who have served our country and to train them for second careers as software and cyber-security professionals.
The Caravan is COVID-19 compliant, meaning veterans will be able to secure invaluable career advice in person, socially distanced, while following safety protocols set out by public health. “They served us all with dedication and sacrifice during their military career and now we are providing them an opportunity to help fill the urgent skills-shortage in the IT sector, which is causing a critical drag on the Canadian economy,” says Jeff Musson, CEO of Coding For Veterans. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of skilled software & cyber-security positions will go unfilled in the next couple of years.
Coding For Veterans is an intensive 8-month course offered in partnership with the University of Ottawa that provides the graduating military veterans with job-ready training and certification. “We are providing the military veterans with the tools required for a career in IT,” said CFV Executive Director Pat Shaw. “We have tech companies, defence contractors, and government agencies interested in filling their talent requirements with graduates from our program, while at the same time, our program provides military veterans with a solid career to gain stable, long-term employment.”
Every year, approximately 7,000 men and women leave the Canadian Forces and they are often perceived as only having the training for security work or policing. But CFV has done extensive research to determine that our military personnel are especially suited to software and cyber security work. Covid-19 restrictions have all but halted the usual job fairs people leaving the military depend upon to help them transition into civilian life and find good-paying jobs. CFV fills that gap and offers tremendous return for applicants who pass the onboarding assessment process and graduate from the program, which is delivered 100% online.
“This program is unique, and established, and one that we should be promoting to our local veterans who are interested and looking for new career opportunities following their leave from the services. I support any actions to help our local veterans obtain career skills and continue bettering their lives and those of Canadians,” stated Masse. “I look forward to bringing the CFV information to our community and encourage any interested Windsor veterans to contact me, or the program directly, for more information,” Masse said.
For more information, veterans can contact: www.codingforveterans.com or 1-800-317-0058.
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For more information: Office of Brian Masse – Melanie Namespetra 613-355-4120 or [email protected]
Coding for Veterans Contacts: CEO Jeff Musson: 416-273-8159 or [email protected], or Pat Shaw, Executive Director, Coding for Veterans and Truck Tour Career Caravan lead: 416-629-1696 or [email protected]