The Honourable Mandy Gull-Masty, Minister of Indigenous Services, announced an investment to help provide employment supports to Indigenous youth in Alberta at the Grey Eagle Resort and Casino in Calgary on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. Darren Makowichuk/Postmedia

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The federal government is investing more than $3.2 million into preparing and training Treaty 7 youth for the workforce, helping to develop job skills and gain hands-on work experience.

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Made possible by the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy (YESS) program, the funding will support Community Futures Treaty 7’s (CFT7) Regional Skills Link Project, which provides training, paid work placements and employment supports to youth across southern Alberta.

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CFT7 is a community-based economic development organization that has been operating for more than 30 years, helping Indigenous Albertans on and off the reserve with employment and business development.

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Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty said employment programs need to account for the different realities First Nations communities face, emphasizing that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. She added that the funding comes at an especially pertinent time, with economic uncertainty a rising concern.

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“Communities across the country are truly preparing for a change in this economy, and we know that First Nations youth need to be and should be at the forefront of participating in that space,” Gull-Masty said.

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The Honourable Mandy Gull-Masty, Minister of Indigenous Services, poses with Treaty 7 chiefs and staff after announcing an investment to help provide employment supports to Indigenous youth in Alberta at the Grey Eagle Resort and Casino in Calgary on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. Darren Makowichuk/Postmedia

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The three-year agreement, which began in January 2025 and runs through March 2028, will provide two streams of programming. One will be group-based training, which will see 105 participants spend nine weeks in a classroom developing skills, followed by 12 weeks of paid work experience, which can be on or off reserves.

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The other stream will support 20 long-term work placements a year, which will help youth find work, and provide wage subsidies to employers hiring Indigenous youth.

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“The ultimate goal is to create employment. We want all the youth that go through this program to get a job at the end of it,” said Rob St. Denis, the youth labour market consultant for CFT7.

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St. Denis said one of the biggest barriers facing Indigenous youth is simply knowing what jobs are available outside their communities. A 2016 CFT7 research project involving 400 Treaty 7 high school students found many could only identify jobs they regularly saw in their communities, such as teachers, firefighters and police officers.

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“We have to do a better job of getting that information out to young people,” St. Denis said.

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The Honourable Mandy Gull-Masty, Minister of Indigenous Services, poses with students after announcing an investment to help provide employment supports to Indigenous youth in Alberta at the Grey Eagle Resort and Casino in Calgary on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. Darren Makowichuk/Postmedia

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Michelle Fox, who works with youth from Kainai First Nation, said another challenge for Indigenous youth entering the workforce is not only establishing industry connections, but finding them.

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“I feel like we are giving a lot of our youth the skills, but sometimes we don’t have the connections to the places to keep them employed,” Fox said.

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Gull-Masty said she understands the effect these programs can have, having participated in a similar program when she was young. She worked in labour market data collection, an experience she said helped her realize not only her career aspirations, but the importance of participating in the workforce.