Question Period Note: Labour Shortages in Canada

What is the Federal Government doing to resolve Labour Shortages in Canada?

We know that Canada’s economic growth is outpacing the ability for many employers to find workers with the right skill sets to fill jobs in growing sectors.

The federal government has a robust suite of programs and partnerships to help address labour shortages and ensure that Canada has a diverse and skilled workforce that can thrive in a rapidly evolving labour market.

The government is working to maximize the labour market participation of underrepresented groups, including women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples and racialized Canadians.

The government is also supporting youth and newcomers to integrate effectively into the labour market to help employers find the talent they need to keep our economy growing.  

Canada’s economy is performing strongly with historical records for job growth and unemployment. At the same time, global shifts toward greener, digital economies, automation and changing skills requirements in the workplace are transforming the Canadian labour market. A rapidly aging population is also affecting labour market growth.

In response to these trends, the Government is focused on enhancing skills for middle class jobs, improving labour market outcomes for youth, newcomers and underrepresented groups and modernizing employment supports.

In June 2023, there were 784,215 job vacancies reported nationally, almost 50% more than the number prior to the pandemic, but 23% lower than the number in June 2022 (1,020,395). Labour market pressures are affecting practically all sectors of the economy and most regions of the country. Sectors with the highest numbers of job vacancies in June 2023 include health care and social assistance (149,795), accommodation and food services (109,535), retail trade (88,895), construction (65,535), manufacturing (56,290), and professional, scientific and technical services (45,430).

Acute shortages in key sectors such as health care, housing and construction, agriculture and agri-food, professional, scientific and technical services are especially concerning as they may adversely affect future economic growth, and Canadians’ standard of living, health, access to food, and safety. Many of these shortages will take time to fill given high educational and training requirements.

While market forces, technology adoption and improved business productivity levels may reduce some pressures, the government has a role to play in supporting partners to address shortages, build our economy and prepare the workforce for the labour market of the future.

To address current and future labour market pressures, the federal government is leveraging and realigning foundational programs and initiatives, targeting new investments and working with all partners, including employers, unions, Indigenous communities, and provinces and territories (P/Ts). This will ensure that job seekers and workers have access to the training and supports required to thrive in today’s and tomorrow’s labour market, and businesses have access to the talent they need to grow.

The Government offers a broad suite of programming to support jobseekers and workers of all ages and from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds, as well as employers, unions and training providers. The Labour Market Transfers and Employment Insurance are the building blocks of Canada’s labour market programming. As the Government of Canada’s single largest investment in training, the transfers reach over one million Canadians across the country and deliver flexible, regionally adapted employment and training supports. EI is a key social safety net supporting Canadians in times of career and life events. The Government also has an array of targeted programs to help Canadians obtain the skills they need to find and keep a good job, and connect with employers looking to fill job vacancies in sectors facing growing demand:

The Canadian Apprenticeship Strategy provides funding to help pre-apprentices, apprentices, employers, unions, and other organizations and tradespeople participate in apprenticeships and succeed in skilled trades careers. 2022 Fall Economic Statement announced a new sustainable jobs stream under the Union Training and Innovation Program (UTIP), a key pillar of the Canadian Apprenticeship Strategy, to support unions in leading the development of green skills training for workers in the trades. It is expected that an additional 20,000 apprentices and journeypersons could benefit from this investment.

To help them better prepare for success at work, in 2022-2023, the Government created almost 190,000 opportunities through the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy (YESS) Program, Canada Summer Jobs and the Student Work Placement Program. In 2023-2024 and 2024-2025, the Government will support 180,000 opportunities through these programs.

The Foreign Credential Recognition Program continues to support the labour market integration of skilled newcomers by funding projects that will make credential recognition processes faster and more efficient, and providing loans, support services, and employment supports to help skilled newcomers acquire Canadian work experience, including within the low-carbon sector. Since 2018, more than 19,000 skilled newcomers have been supported through loans and support services.

The federal government is positioned with the tools and partnerships to support Canada’s labour market in order to alleviate labour shortages, build an inclusive society, and drive continued economic growth for years to come.

None