Jobs will be the key to Canada’s economic recovery, according to Toronto’s C.D. Howe Institute. In a recent note published at the beginning of the month, the think-tank established findings and proposals urging Ottawa to act with regard to employment insurance, dissemination of information, education and inclusion policy.
Finding a place on the job market in a rapidly changing economy – this is the problem the report’s author, former chief economist of the TD Bank, Craig Alexander, sought to address. Among several findings, he believes that Canada has not always managed to adapt to a changing labour market as a result of globalization, the ageing population and technological innovations. According to him, the situation is likely to worsen with the falling price of oil, which will undeniably have an economic impact, increasing the number of people out of work.
The job market is sensitive to vulnerabilities such as international competition which has pushed companies to cut costs and consequently avoid hiring or raising salaries as a condition for achieving productivity increases.
The author also points to mounting insecurity with an increase in self-employed, temporary and part-time workers. In addition, he notes that the proportion of unemployed people in the last 15 months and more has doubled since 2008, rising from 6.9% to 13.4%.
Four priorities to combat job vulnerability
The top priority relates to employment insurance for which C.D. Howe recommends a transfer of admissibility criteria and regional compensation rules to the federal level. The goal is to make them uniform across the country and thereby encourage labour mobility.
The second priority is to improve information on the state of the job market. Believing that the current data issued is inadequate, the body calls for a more targeted collection and dissemination of information for employers and workers. This work will enable the Canadian supply and demand to be matched, and so reduce foreign labour needs.
Development of worker qualification and skills makes up the third responsibility. Between 1999 and 2012, most of the jobs created were highly skilled. As a result, the report’s author believes it is necessary to improve the provinces’ education systems and company training.
Finally, the policy of inclusion is the fourth priority for jobs. The report mentions the need for better balance between training young people and the needs of the market, increasing the number of women in fields where they are underrepresented, special help for indigenous populations and better recognition of the skills of immigrant workers.