Rotary hears from Chamber President

The Portage Rotary Club got an update on the Portage and District Chamber of Commerce during Tuesday’s meeting from chamber president Mathew Henderson.

“The Chamber is starting to really change our committees to put more of a focus on our strategic plan. The initiatives within the strategic plan are assigned to a specific committee where people are aware of what it is they are going to be doing as a board member of the Portage Chamber,” said Henderson.

He also discussed the proposed 1 per cent PST hike announced by the Province earlier this year. The Chamber feels it is not friendly to small business and could be managed more effectively.

“We put out a call to our members to get their feedback – most of it was negative based on the impact it will have on small businesses, and the buying power it will have on individual consumers - which will also push more people to go to United States where goods are already cheaper,” said Henderson. “The infrastructure fund is something where there is very little accountability and there is very little plan. The Chamber really wants more accountability and to better see where the funds are going.”

Another initiative that Henderson discussed with the Rotary Club was a partnership with the Dakota Ojibway Tribal Council (DOTC) to get more Aboriginal youths employed in Portage la Prairie.

“The DOTC has this initiative to bring a lot more of their younger people identified between the ages of 18 and 24 into the workplace and be work ready for employers within the Portage area,” said Henderson. “We are working with them to identify different businesses that are looking for employees within that skill set.”

The Chamber is now looking to collect resumes from the youths to pass on to local businesses.

“They can identify whether or not the skill sets that are out there is something that will help fit a need for them,” said Henderson