Meeting skills development challenges:
Government responsesAnthony Muttu
DirectorPolicy and Planning
Workplace Partnerships Directorate, ESDCToronto, November 7, 2013
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Labour Market Drivers
Globalization
Technological changes
Demographic Changes
Regional economies
Acknowledgements: Presentation prepared by Shelly Binch and Marjorie Marcil, Skills and Employment Branch, ESDC
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Labour Market at a glance…
5.56.06.57.07.58.08.59.0
5.9
6.9
Unemployment rate in CanadaJanuary 2008 to September 2013%
Unemployment rate lowest since January 2008. But 1.3 million Canadians are looking for jobs.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey
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Regional variations in the unemployment rate
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Skill shortages are affecting economic growth
Skills shortages are emerging in certain regions and sectors.
– Across the country we are hearing from employers that these shortages pose a significant barrier to economic development.
• Employers will not find qualified candidates for 1.5 million available jobs in the next 10 years (Association of Canadian Community colleges)
• Need for more than 1 million skilled trade workers by 2020 (Skills Canada)
• Province of Ontario is losing on $24.3 billion in economic activity because employers are not able to find people with the right skills (Conference Board of Canada)
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ESDC Mandate
ESDC mandate:– Help match skills with current and future needs.– Ensure all Canadians have access to skills development and
training needed to participate in the labour market.– Increase labour market participation.– Contribute to an efficient and integrated labour market.
One of our priorities going forward: addressing shortages by helping Canadians get the skills they need to take advantage of available jobs in the sector.
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Budget 2012 - Connecting Canadians with Available Jobs
Canada Job Grant
Opportunities for apprentices
Support to underrepresented groups
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Increasing efforts to connect Canadians to available jobs
Timely, relevant information on job postings for EI clients.
Launched in January 2013, the Enhanced Job Alerts system will expand the amount of information being sent to EI claimants.
Measures are underway to better share information between the EI Program and Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) to encourage employers to turn to EI claimants first.
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Provinces and Territories play a significant role in training
Labour Market Development Agreements (LMDAs)
$1.95 billion per yearEmployment services and skills development
for EI-eligible unemployed
Targeted Initiative for Older Workers (TIOW)
Since 2006, $270M invested cost-shared 70:30
Supports older workers living in small, vulnerable communities affected by significant downsizing and/or high
unemployment
Labour Market Agreements (LMAs)$500M per year Interventions to assist non-EI eligible unemployed (youth, Aboriginal people, women) and low-skilled employed Canadians
Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities (LMAPDs)
$218M per year, cost-shared Supports that improve the employment situation for Canadians with disabilities
Significant change in the labour market architecture occurred in 2006
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Investing in Skilled Trades and Apprenticeship Red Seal trades are critical to the Canadian economy (e.g., Electrician,
Heavy Equipment Operator, Rig Technician and Welder).
Significant investments in apprenticeship and the skilled trades through:– Direct supports to apprentices:
• Apprenticeship Incentive Grant (AIG), • Apprenticeship Completion Grant (ACG), • Tuition Tax Credit, • Tradesperson’s Tools Deduction (TTD), • Apprentice Mechanic’s Tools Deduction (AMTD), and • EI during periods of technical training.
– Direct support to employers: • Apprenticeship Job Creation Tax Credit (AJCTC).
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Enhancing the Youth Employment Strategy
The Youth Employment Strategy (YES) invests $300M annually to help youth aged 15 to 30 gain the skills, work experience and abilities needed to successfully transition to the workplace.
The YES has three program streams: – Skills Link – Career Focus– Summer Work Experience (Canada Summer Jobs)
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Increasing labour market participation of Aboriginal people A range of programs is offered to support the skills development and
labour market participation of Aboriginal people.
– Aboriginal Skills and Employment Training Strategy (ASETS)• Designed to help Aboriginal people prepare for, find, and maintain jobs. • 84 agreement holders and more than 600 points of service.
– First Nations Job Fund– Increasing the availability of training and employment services, in partnership with
First Nations communities.– $109 million over four years, the Job Fund supports a wide range of activities that
lead directly to jobs.
– The Skills and Partnership Fund – A five-year, $210M initiative launched in July 2010 to increase Aboriginal skills
development and labour market participation through project-based funding for Aboriginal organizations where training and skills upgrading is needed to take advantage of economic opportunities.
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Increasing awareness through improved labour market information
Sectoral Initiatives Program (SIP) – launched in August 2012– Supports partnership-based, industry-driven labour market
information to help Canadians make informed decisions about learning and work.
WorkinginCanada.gc.ca (WiC) – Provides occupation- and location-specific learning and labour
market information and current job opportunities.
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Supporting foreign credential recognition
Launched in February 2012, F-P/T governments have committed to the Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.
Foreign Credential Recognition Loans pilot project – tests models of community-based partnerships in order to help internationally trained individuals.
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Questions?