The COVID-19 pandemic severely disrupted the workplace. Some businesses closed either temporarily or permanently. Others enabled their employees to work from home. Those that could not shift to remote work had to implement new safety procedures to prevent their employees from getting sick. Along the way, access to skills training was interrupted. In cases where training did continue, its focus often shifted to managing the changes in the workplace caused by the pandemic.

The latest wave of the Survey on Employment and Skills, conducted in March 2023, revisits the issue of access to skills training. Three years after the onset of the pandemic, it finds that more workers are participating in work-related training to improve their skills, while training is becoming less focused on the management of the pandemic. It also shows that the most common type of training is that which focuses on workplace health and safety. The survey finds that working from home does not appear to have posed a barrier to skills training to date, as those who have switched to working from home are more likely than those who continue to work in their regular workplace to access training to improve their skills.

Survey Details

The Survey on Employment and Skills is conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research, in partnership with the Future Skills Centre and the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University. The fifth wave of the study consists of a survey of 5,904 Canadians age 18 and over, conducted between March 1 and April 3, 2023, in all provinces and territories. It was conducted both online (in the provinces) and by telephone (in the territories).

Funder

The Survey on Employment and Skills is funded primarily by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Centre / Le sondage sur l’emploi et les compétences est financé principalement par le Centre des Compétences futures du gouvernement du Canada.

Text reads: “Funded by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Program.” To the right is the word Canada with a small Canadian flag above the last a, highlighting how perceptions of trades training are gaining traction over university.

Participation à la formation professionnelle

Un rapport de l’enquête sur l’emploi et les compétences

La pandémie de COVID-19 a gravement perturbé le lieu de travail. Certaines entreprises ont fermé temporairement ou définitivement. D’autres ont permis à leurs employés de travailler à domicile. Ceux qui n’ont pas pu passer au travail à distance ont dû mettre en oeuvre de nouvelles procédures de sécurité pour éviter que leurs employés ne tombent malades. En cours de route, l’accès à la formation professionnelle a été interrompu. Dans les cas où la formation s’est poursuivie, elle s’est souvent concentrée sur la gestion des changements sur le lieu de travail provoqués par la pandémie.

La dernière vague de l’enquête sur l’emploi et les compétences, menée en mars 2023, revient sur la question de l’accès à la formation professionnelle. Trois ans après le début de la pandémie, elle constate que davantage de professionnels participent à des formations liées au travail afin d’améliorer leurs compétences, tandis que la formation est moins axée sur la gestion de la pandémie. Elle indique également que le type de formation le plus courant est celui qui est axé sur la santé et la sécurité au travail. L’enquête révèle que le travail à domicile ne semble pas avoir constitué un obstacle à la formation professionnelle à ce jour, puisque les personnes qui ont opté pour le travail à domicile sont plus susceptibles que celles qui continuent à travailler sur leur lieu de travail habituel d’accéder à la formation pour améliorer leurs compétences.

L’enquête sur l’emploi et les compétences est menée par l’Environics Institute for Survey Research, en partenariat avec le Centre des Compétences futures et l’Institut de la diversité de l’Université métropolitaine de Toronto. La cinquième vague de l’étude consiste en une enquête auprès de 5 904 Canadiens âgés de 18 ans et plus, menée entre le 1er mars et le 3 avril 2023, dans toutes les provinces et tous les territoires. Elle a été réalisée en ligne (dans les provinces) et par téléphone (dans les territoires).

Le sondage sur l’emploi et les compétences est financé principalement par le Centre des Compétences futures du gouvernement du Canada / The Survey on Employment and Skills is funded primarily by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Centre.

Illustration with a green clipboard, black briefcase, and pink speech bubble next to bold black text: Survey on Employment & Skills. Explores perceptions of trades training gaining traction over university on a light background.

The Survey on Employment and Skills is conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research, in partnership with the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University and the Future Skills Centre.

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Environics Institute for Survey Research

701-33 Bloor Street East
Toronto, ON M4W 3H1

info@environicsinstitute.org

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