From March 10 to 12, Metis youth from across the province met in Saskatoon to learn more about career options and job market skills at the 2006 Metis Education, Employment and Training Youth Conference.

Young people from 15 to 29 took part in the event, perusing displays at a career fair, learning about Metis culture and looking deeper into workforce and community issues.

An out-of-province club took top honours at a Saskatchewan tournament which has long been dubbed the All-Native Stanley Cup.

Misty's, a team based out of Ontario's Slant Lake, won the championship final at the 42nd annual senior men's hockey tournament run by the Battleford's Indian and Métis Friendship Centre (BIMFC).

The event, which began March 31 and ran until April 2, was staged at the North Battleford Civic Centre.

Once. That's it. The new federal government's throne speech, which sets out the agenda of the ruling Conservative party as it heads into its first session of Parliament, mentions the word Aboriginal only one time in more than 2,000 words. The speech was delivered by Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean on April 4 in the Senate chambers in Ottawa.

A pilot project being run by the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission is giving students a chance to learn about career opportunities available to them within the trades.

The Saskatchewan Youth Apprenticeship Program is designed to promote apprenticeship to students in Grades 9 to 12.

Age has perhaps slowed them down a step or two but tournament chairman Milt Tootoosis said spectators will still be impressed with the quality of play at the Lawrence Weenie Cup.

The sixth annual tournament, which features Native masters (35 and over) teams, begins on March 31 and continues until April 2.All games will be held at the Don Ross Arena in North Battleford.

Age has perhaps slowed them down a step or two but tournament chairman Milt Tootoosis said spectators will still be impressed with the quality of play at the Lawrence Weenie Cup.

The sixth annual tournament, which features Native masters (35 and over) teams, begins on March 31 and continues until April 2.All games will be held at the Don Ross Arena in North Battleford.

It had been awhile since an Aboriginal hockey tournament had been staged in the Queen City but organizers are rather pleased with how things transpired at the inaugural Oskana Cup, held March 3 to 5 in Regina.

A total of 17 clubs, competing in three different divisions, took part in the event.

"We're very pleased with it, being our first time with this event," said tournament chairman Milt Tootoosis.

Unofficially, the tournament is known as the All-Native Stanley Cup.

That, in part, could help to explain the longevity of the annual senior men's hockey tournament run by Battleford's Indian and Metis Friendship Centre (BIMFC).

The 42nd edition of the tournament begins March 31 and runs until April 2. Matches will be held at the North Battleford Civic Centre.

Organizers are hoping to have 16 participating clubs, which would be a slight increase from the 15 teams that competed at last year's event.

It's clearly unconstitutional, but there it is in Saskatchewan's Labour Standards Act regulations-an exemption that allows employers to escape paying overtime to workers in the northern third of the province.

Section 7 of the regulations, which were last updated in 1995, exempts companies located north of the 62nd township, an area that begins just north of the city of Prince Albert, from paying time-and-a-half when employees work more than an eight-hour day or a 40-hour week.

Three municipalities located in the designated area are not included in this exemption.

The University of Saskatchewan's College of Commerce is hoping to encourage more Aboriginal people to consider enrolling in its MBA program, thanks to a newly announced bridging program being funded through a donation from Scotiabank.

Plans for creation of the Scotiabank Master of Business Administration Bridging Program were officially announced on Feb. 22, made possible by a donation of $250,000 from the financial institution. In addition to the bridging program, the money will also fund creation of a scholarship program for Aboriginal students in the university's MBA program.