Mr. Speaker, when the purchase of Met Life in Ottawa by Mutual Life threatened a thousand jobs in this area, MPs from the national capital region began a series of meetings with the company and the minister to minimize the impact on employment in our region and on individual employees.
Recently Mutual officers met with the members to report on how they had met their commitments to us. Mutual has developed 600 jobs in four centres of excellence in Ottawa. Priority was given to hiring nearly 600 staff from Met Life with a freeze on external hiring and a survey to remove any barriers to employment in the new organization.
A career centre, training opportunities and counselling ensured that 93% of affected individuals were successfully repositioned within the first year. A $5 million transition fund has helped over 100 individuals and remains available to assist those who need additional help.
Mutual, under its new name Clarica, will continue and enhance its contribution to volunteer and charitable organizations.