The SEIU Healthcare Training Centre has received $1.3 million from the federal government’s Future Skills Centre to expand training programs for 100 internationally educated nurses in Ontario.
The funding will allow the training centre to grow its IEN Career Pathway Program, which helps foreign-trained nurses obtain licensure and enter Ontario’s healthcare workforce. The program provides personalized case management, financial support and targeted training to help participants navigate regulatory requirements.
The new funding builds on a 2025 grant from the same program that supported 50 nurses through the training process.
Addressing nursing shortage
Ontario faces a projected nursing shortage of over 30,000 workers, according to estimates cited by the union.
The program aims to reduce systemic barriers that internationally educated nurses face when entering the Canadian healthcare system, said Tyler Downey, president of SEIU Healthcare.
“With this funding, our union’s IEN Career Pathway Program will move 100 more internationally educated nurses to the frontline of care to better support the delivery of healthcare in Canada,” said Downey.
Program supports navigation process
The training program helps internationally educated nurses work through regulatory and licensing requirements to practice in Canada.
Ejekwu Perpetua, a nurse from Ghana who completed the program, said the support was critical to navigating the licensing process.
“When I arrived in Canada as a nurse from Ghana, I didn’t have the right information, and without the right information it’s difficult to move through the expensive maze of bureaucracy,” said Perpetua. “The union’s program helped me navigate the process so I could practice as a nurse in Canada.”
The SEIU Healthcare Training Centre delivers education and workforce readiness programs for healthcare workers at various career stages. SEIU Healthcare represents more than 70,000 frontline healthcare workers across Ontario.
