• Français
Future Skills Center logo
Français
Polygon Created with Sketch. Home | Research
Research

The Future of Work: Addressing Skill Imbalances in Canada

We’ve lost our balance. Skills shortages were especially acute during the post-pandemic recovery. A Statistics Canada survey from 2022 revealed that over half of employers were grappling with skills gaps and more than two-thirds were struggling to find candidates with the necessary skills. In the spring of 2023, over half of small businesses expected recruiting and retaining skilled workers to be a significant obstacle in the next three months.

This research explores how skill imbalances are expected to evolve over the next two decades, driven by technology adoption and demographic shifts. As automation and AI technologies continue to grow, what skills will employers be looking for? What policies do we need to stem the tide of growing skill shortages in critical industries? How can data be used to adapt curricula to address current and future skill requirements? Solutions call for a range of measures, from interventions across education levels to improved integration of immigrant talent.

Download Brief

Key findings

Skill imbalances will contribute to rising job vacancies in Canada. Job vacancies will reach 917,000 by 2040 and the job vacancy rate will reach 3.8 per cent, resulting in over $11 billion in lost economic activity.

Vacancies in technical and manual services are expected to increase by 30 per cent between 2023 and 2040, reaching 366,000 by the end of the period. Demand for foundational and interpersonal skills—like oral comprehension and coordination—will grow in this sector, while imbalances in technical skills will decline.

Vacancies in knowledge-based services are expected to increase by 35 per cent between 2023 and 2040, reaching 365,000. While this sector requires a high level of proficiency across a wide range of skills, the imbalance for foundational and interpersonal skills is expected to increase the most.

More from FSC

Person on computer using an AI image generator app
Research

Rising Concerns About the Impact of New Technologies on Employment

  • December 2025
  • Diversity Institute, Environics Institute
The proportion of Canadian workers who are worried about losing their job in the coming years because the work they do will soon be done by computers or robots has increased, and this cannot be accounted for simply by pointing to growing pessimism about the economy in general. Rather, there is a more direct relationship between concerns about the impact of automation on employment, and the use of AI programs at work.
1 Related Reports
Group of young coworkers analyzing data while sitting in front of computers while one of them looking through notes in notebook
Research

Scoping a PIAAC Research Agenda: Programme for the International Assessments of Adult Competencies

  • December 2025
  • Shift Insights
This project was initiated to develop a Canadian PIAAC research agenda that can guide policymakers, researchers and practitioners in using these new data to close knowledge gaps, enhance policy decisions and improve national performance in skills development.
1 Related Reports
Indigenous Canadian using a mobile device
Project

Project Connect: Professional Project Administrator Program

  • December 2025
  • Royal Roads University
Indigenous Peoples represent the fastest growing and youngest population in Canada, offering critical potential to address skills shortages. Yet systemic inequities in access to education and training persist, resulting in lower employment outcomes and increased vulnerability to economic downturns.
2 Related Reports
View all Research