Work Experience Opportunities Grant
About the Grant
People on income and disability assistance and Indigenous people receiving equivalent federal assistance often face barriers to employment and can find it difficult to secure meaningful work.
United Way BC’s Work Experience Opportunities Grant provides BC non-profit organizations with funding to create time-limited paid work opportunities where program participants receive essential skills training and hands-on paid work experience to improve their employability while preparing them for in-demand jobs.
Additional income earned by program participants does not affect income or disability-assistance benefits.
This province-wide grant stream supports BC non-profit organizations to deliver paid placements and enhance programs and services offered.
Is the Work Experience Opportunities Grant (WEOG) an employment program?
No. WEOG is work experience, not employment. Participants receive a stipend, not wages. BC Employment and Assistance (BCEA) clients who participate in work experience are specifically exempted from being considered “employees” under the Employment Standards Act through Section 32(3) of the Employment Standards Regulation.
How will clients benefit from these placements?
The grant was made available to non-profit organizations to deliver work experience placements for BCEA clients who will receive financial support to develop life and essential skills to aid them in their connection to the labour market and provide enhanced community benefit.
Who is eligible
- BCEA clients including:
- Income Assistance (IA)
- Disability Assistance (DA)
- Hardship Assistance (HA) recipients
- Income assistance through the Person with Persistent Multiple Barriers to Employment (PPMB) benefit
- Indigenous individuals on reserve or within treaty lands receiving or eligible to receive federal assistance.
Low Entropy is pleased to offer ten (10) WEOG placements as Retail Thrift Store Associates.
These placements will happen between September 2026 and January 2027, for approximately 10 hours per week, totalling 200 hours.
Testimonial
When I first began working with this participant, her confidence was very low. Past experiences had caused her to question her abilities and her own potential, and she often looked to others for reassurance and direction.
Over time, I came to understand that she needed an environment where she could feel safe enough to grow. She needed patience, encouragement, and people who would recognize her strengths even when she could not yet see them herself. This is where Low Entropy became such a meaningful fit for her.
She has always had a genuine desire to give back and contribute to others, and the culture and values of Low Entropy aligned naturally with that part of who she is. It gave her a place where her willingness to help others could be recognized and where she could experience herself as someone who had something valuable to offer.
One of the most rewarding parts of supporting her has been seeing the shift in how she sees herself. She has developed a much stronger sense of independence and confidence. She is more willing to take initiative, trust her own judgment, express herself, and recognize that she is capable of contributing meaningfully.
Her journey at Low Entropy is a reminder of what can happen when someone is given the right environment, genuine encouragement, and the opportunity to discover their own strengths. Low Entropy did not simply give her a place to participate. It gave her a place where she could begin to see herself differently.
I am very proud of the growth I have witnessed in her and grateful for everything Low Entropy has provided along her journey.
-- Employment Specialist supporting a Low Entropy participant