Research + White Papers
Research
Employment Gaps and Underemployment for Racialized Groups and Immigrants in Canada: Current Findings and Future Directions
"Foreign-sounding names” are 20 to 40 per cent less likely to get a call-back for a job interview, depending on company size.
Research
Bridging the Digital Skills Gap: Alternative Pathways
Digital skills and digital careers are part of every industry’s future. Yet employers say they can’t find workers with the information and communication technology (ICT)...
Research
Thinking Twice About Technology and the Future of Work
Technology is being used to change power balances in workplaces and to perpetuate long-standing precarious employment relationships, Jim Stanford argues. But the exploitative practices of the gig economy reflect deliberate choices, rather than the inevitable onward march of technology, and creating better jobs also lies within our power.
Research
Solving the Skills Puzzle: The Missing Piece is Good Information
In a world of work increasingly driven by the supply and demand of skills rather than the qualifications of graduates, employers have trouble finding the workers they need and workers struggle to keep up with changing demands. Emna Braham and Steven Tobin explain how better and more accessible labour market information lies at the heart of clarifying the skills and training needs of today and tomorrow.
Research
Understanding the Future of Skills: Trends and Global Policy Responses
Studies on the future of work tend to focus on the jobs at risk of automation, with projections varying widely from 6% to 59%. Sunil Johal and Michael Urban take a different approach in reviewing eight expert reports and the actions taken by nine countries to prepare for the challenges ahead. They distill key lessons for Canada to ensure workers are equipped with the skills they need to thrive in tomorrow’s economy, whatever shape it takes.
Research
There’s a revolution happening in skilled trades
The revolution is being sparked by automation, low-carbon economies, digitization, and other emerging work trends. These new technologies need skills that are not usually at the core of a trade school education.
Research
Applied and Experiential Skills
In this multi-year project, our team of researchers will study and support ongoing work-integrated learning initiatives in Canada focusing on the drive to create more experiential learning opportunities, especially among vulnerable populations, while also zeroing in on apprenticeship training.
Research
The Future is Social and Emotional
Demand for skilled employees is not new, but the skills considered “in demand” have evolved. While developing skills is a life-long endeavour, the skills that Canadians learn through post-secondary training are key to workplace success. Demand for social and emotional skills is growing. Are we doing enough to prepare Canadians for the evolving workplace?
Research
Skills Next Series
The Public Policy Forum, the Diversity Institute, and the Future Skills Centre have joined together to publish Skills Next, a series that explores what is working in workplaces, universities, and the labour market – and where workers are falling through the gaps in our skills training system. Each report focuses on one issue — such as the impact of technology in the workplace, gig work, digital skills, and barriers to employment that some marginalized groups experience -- and reviews the existing state of knowledge on this topic and identifies areas in need of additional research.