Advice to ease job hunt aches Some have better luck than others, but Langara instructor offers advice on how to hunt jobs smarter By MIKE HODDER unstable job market may find per- sonal references and_ practical work experience more valuable than their degrees, according to one Langa- ra instructor. “If you have someone to vouch for you from within a company or a per- sonal connection rather than just go- ing with a paper application, you’re much more likely to find employment,” said Sean Padley, who teaches in the co-operative education department at Langara. “The bottom line is that work experi- ence counts,” he said. “You can’t just assume that you’re Va Va going to get hired If you have info a manage- ment-level job just someone to vouch because you have a management de- for you. .. yowre [isc students heading into an gree.” Canada’s De- cember 2013 La- bour Market Bulle- tin showed youth MACHOOPS BASKETBALL Christine Ko (middle) stands with her two sons, Nicolas (left) and Matthew. Ko believes the tax credit is not enough. Kids sweating for tax credit? LESLIE KAM photo unemployment in B.C. at 138.2 per cent, double the provincial unem- ployment rate of more likely to find em- ployment SEAN PADLEY 6.6 per cent, ac- cording to Statis- tics Canada. The BC Liberals claim a million new jobs will be created in the province by 2020,with roughly half of them in skilled trades and technical fields. Langara geography student Ali Har- ris studied communications at Cap- ilano University and works for a com- pany doing marketing and branding for wineries. After working in that field, she’s realized communications isn’t for her. “T personally think people should be working within their fields while they’re in school if that’s possible,” Harris said. “That way you can actual- ly see if you like it because I decided pretty quickly that it wasn’t what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.” Harris says she will continue to work in communications while she studies at Langara because it pays the bills. MIKE HODDER photo Langara student Ali Harris thinks students should work in their cho- sen field while studying. The federal government rewards parents for exercising their kids By LESLIE KAM ome Vancouver parents say the chil- dren’s fitness tax credit needs improve- ment if the government wants more children to engage in physical activity. The federal government introduced the chil- dren’s fitness tax credit in 2007. Parents can claim up to $500 per year for fees paid for each child under 16, as long as the child participated in an eligible program. “(The tax credit] has helped, but it’s not nearly enough,” said YMCA member Christine Ko, a single mother of two boys. “Tam not really saving that much money... and when it comes down to it, it doesn’t affect the participation of my kids.” The non-refundable tax credit is calculated by multiplying the amount spent on physical activity to a maximum of $500 by the lowest personal income tax rate - 15 per cent - which equates to a maximum of $75 rebate for each Programs eligible for the tax credit must run at least one session per week for a minimum of eight consecutive weeks. They must also be su- pervised, suitable for chil- dren and include a signif- cant amount of physical activity that contributes to cardio-respiratory en- durance, plus one or more of muscular strength, endurance, flexibility or balance, ac- cording to the Government of Canada’s web- site. “There’s still a lot to improve on, and right now the money you save isn’t enough to help families make the decision to put their kids into sports,” said YMCA member Helen Ward. “TThe government] will have to make some changes if they want to use [the tax credit] to promote fitness.” HELEN WARD YMCA member tral Public Health journal showed only 15.6 per cent of the 2,135 Canadians surveyed believed the tax credit had increased their child’s par- ticipation in physical activity. The tax credit program has cost taxpayers more than half a billion dollars since its intro- duction. In 2011, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a news conference that the children’s fitness tax credit benefits roughly 1.4 million Canadi- an families annually. Harper went on to say that if his Conserva- tive government is re-elected in 2015, he would double the children’s fitness tax credit from $500 to $1000, which will double the $75 rebate to $150. Harper has also pledged to introduce an adult version of the current children’s fitness tax credit that could potentially cost $268 mil- lion over five years. child. A 2009 survey published in the BioMed Cen- Bromance at men’s yoga class Ever felt shy about doing yoga in front of women? The free classes are de- signed to be a safe haven By CHRISTOPHER SLATER hen YoGuy Men’s Yoga founder W:: instructor Stacey Reeves started his men’s only yoga program in 2011, he had two things in mind: getting more guys to feel com- fortable in an activity dominated by women and encouraging men to get out and meet others in their own commu- nity. Located at 686 West Broadway, the studio at Treloar Physiotheraphy Clin- ic hosts YoGuy Men’s Yoga for free ev- ery Sunday between 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. “The whole idea was to get people to come out and see if this is something they’d want to try,” said Reeves. “Tt seems men lose their circle of friends more so than women. “When you’re 20, you still have quite a fairly large social circle left over from probably high school. “But as you get older, you get mort- gages, you get married, you get respon- sibilities. You’ll often lose your circle of friends. [This class] is really no differ- ent than a baseball practice [or] a hock- ey practice.” Many of those who attend the week- ly sessions are seeking relief from chronic pain and find that having the support of other men in similar circum- stances can make a difference, Reeves said. He said men are more comfort- able practicing yoga among other guys and once they have gone to a few class- es, often create bonds with one another in groups that average between 10 to 15 participants. Langara students seem to agree with the concept of men’s only yoga. “T think that’s fine, yoga classes with all men,” said Langara student Devin Braunagel. “Maybe it’s a testosterone thing ... all-women yoga classes... I think that’s fine too.” Student Victoria Mykietyn said, “It may make them feel more comfortable. There are lots of women’s only yoga classes.” YOGUY MEN'S YOGA photo Founder Stacey Reeves practices yoga among participants. Yoga Types HM Bikram: classes held in artificially heated rooms do- ing a series of 26 poses HE tyengar. utmost attention paid to finding alignment in a pose using props such as chairs and ropes HE Vinyasa: “flow,” fluid, movement- intensive practices, accompanied by music ME Ashtanga: rigorous style with sequence of postures, each style links every movement to a breath Source: Gaiam Life