New registrations, certifications, and pathways indicators of registered apprentices in Canada, 2023
Released: 2024-12-11
Apprenticeship programs in Canada showed strong signs of recovery in 2023, with new registrations and certifications continuing their upward trend that began in 2021 after the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Across Canada, excluding Alberta, there were 70,521 new registrations in apprenticeship programs in 2023, marking an 8.0% increase from 2022 (65,307) and surpassing the 2019 pre-pandemic level (65,967). Data for Alberta are excluded for reasons explained in the Note to readers of this release.
The number of Canadians receiving certificates in trades increased by 3.0% to 42,021 in 2023. Despite this growth, the number of certifications issued in 2023 remained below the pre-pandemic level observed in 2019.
Chart 1
New registrations and certifications by year, Canada, excluding Alberta, 2008 to 2023
Registrations in nearly all provinces exceed pre-pandemic levels in 2023
With the exception of Quebec, all provinces experienced growth in apprenticeship registrations in 2023, recovering from the near record-low levels observed in 2020, the first year of the pandemic. By 2023, all provinces except Ontario (-4.6%) had either surpassed or nearly reached their pre-pandemic 2019 levels.
New registrations in service- and education-related trade groups remain well below pre-pandemic levels
New registrations in most major trade groups increased in 2023, with construction-related trades such as construction workers (+34.0%), sheet metal workers (+24.8%), and plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters (+22.1%) experiencing some of the largest gains. These increases led to registration numbers that exceeded pre-pandemic levels, occurring within the context of broader challenges facing the construction industry and the skilled trades in general, such as aging workforces and the need for replacements.
Chart 2
Percentage change of new registrations in selected trades in 2023, compared with the previous year (2022) and the pre-pandemic year (2019), Canada (excluding Alberta)
Conversely, while several major trade groups saw modest year-over-year growth in 2023, new registrations in many service-related trade groups, such as hairstylists and estheticians (-31.7%), food services (-27.2%), early childhood educators and assistants (-24.4%), and community and social service workers (-19.0%), remained well below levels reported in 2019.
Apprenticeship certification rates continue to grow in 2023
The certification rate, representing the percentage of registered apprentices who completed their program within its expected duration, rose to 20.1% in 2023, a 0.9 percentage point increase from 2022. Despite this improvement, the 2023 rate remains slightly below the 2019 level (21.8%).
Since apprenticeship programs typically span three to four years, many of those completing in 2023 began their training in 2019 or 2020. Apprentices starting in 2020 likely faced disruptions due to pandemic-related public health measures. However, compared to the three previous cohorts whose training was also impacted by the pandemic, a higher proportion of apprentices completed their programs within the program duration in 2023.
Certifications in most major trade groups remain below pre-pandemic levels
Most major trade groups experienced an increase in certifications in 2023, with construction workers (+52.5%), hairstylists and estheticians (+24.4%), food services (+22.4%), and refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics (+16.0%) reporting the highest growth. Despite this, certifications in 15 of the 24 major trade groups remained below pre-pandemic levels, with service-related trade groups such as food service (-45.9% compared with 2019), community and social service workers (-37.3%), early childhood educators and assistants (-23.3%), and hairstylists and estheticians (-22.1%), among the trades with the lowest recovery rates.
Chart 3
Percentage change of certifications in selected trades in 2023, compared with the previous year (2022) and the pre-pandemic year (2019), Canada excluding Alberta
All provinces except Quebec had a year-over-year increase in apprenticeship certifications in 2023, with British Columbia (+12.5%) experiencing the strongest gain. Despite significant growth in certifications in Canada (excluding Alberta) during the years following the pandemic, the number of certifications observed in 2023 was 6.0% below pre-pandemic levels.
Chart 4
Certification rate by cohort, Canada, 2019 to 2023
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Note to readers
Context
The provinces and territories, which provide the data for this release, make operational and administrative changes related to the training and certification of the trades within their jurisdictions. These changes may affect historical comparisons. In 2023, Alberta designated a number of occupations as trades and began issuing certificates. Additionally, individuals in certain trades could now be reported multiple times for their registrations and certifications across related sub-trades, a practice that was not implemented prior to 2023. The data should be interpreted within the context of these administrative and operational changes. For further information on federal, provincial and territorial changes, see the Registered Apprenticeship Information System Guide.
This release includes data from the 2023 Registered Apprenticeship Information System (RAIS) as a part of the Education and Labour Market Longitudinal Platform. Apprenticeship pathway data include information on certification, continuation, and discontinuation rates at 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 times the program duration, corresponding to four, six and eight years after registration for most programs. For more information on the concepts and the methodology used in this study, consult "Pathways indicators for registered apprentices in Canada, 2021." This guide is part of the Technical Reference Guides for the Education and Labour Market Longitudinal Platform (37200001).
Data, definitions and concepts
Apprenticeship pathway indicators were derived for all trades at the aggregate level and for selected trades at disaggregate levels, including the 25 Red Seal trades and 5 non-Red Seal trades that account for most apprentices from 2008 to 2023. Four non-Red Seal trades—child and youth worker, developmental services worker, early childhood educator, and educational assistant—are considered designated trades with apprenticeship programs only in Ontario.
Certification
The requirements for granting a certificate vary by jurisdiction in Canada. In most instances, an apprentice is issued a certificate if they complete requirements such as supervised on-the-job training and technical training and pass one or more examinations. Meanwhile, most trade qualifiers become certified once they pass an examination.
Cohort
The group of apprentices who finished their program duration by the end of a given calendar year. The most common program duration is four years; however, it varies from one to five years across provinces and territories and trades. As a result, a cohort is a group of apprentices who start their training in different years, depending on the program duration. For example, the 2021 cohort is composed of apprentices who started a one-year program in 2020, a two-year program in 2019, a three-year program in 2018, a four-year program in 2017 and a five-year program in 2016.
Compulsory trades
Trades where workers are required to undertake or complete an apprenticeship program to be employed in the trade. Provinces and territories determine the compulsory or non-compulsory status of designated trades. As such, the compulsory or non-compulsory status of a designated trade varies across provinces and territories.
Continuation
The proportion of apprentices who are continuing a given apprenticeship program at the end of the reporting year.
Designated trades
Trades for which apprenticeship training and trade qualifications are available in Canada. These trades are governed by provincial and territorial jurisdictions that determine the trades for which apprenticeship training is made available and certificates are granted. Provinces and territories also determine which designated trades require certification to work unsupervised in the trade. Data from the RAIS include only trades designated in at least one province or territory.
Discontinuation
The proportion of apprentices who discontinued a given apprenticeship program after their registration date.
Red Seal and non-Red Seal programs
The Red Seal program sets common standards to assess the skills of tradespeople across Canada. Journeypersons who meet the Red Seal standards through examination receive a Red Seal endorsement on their provincial or territorial trade certificates. There are 54 trades at the national level for which common Red Seal standards are currently available. Non-Red Seal trades, by contrast, do not have interprovincial standards. Many non-Red Seal trades do not have an examination requirement to work in the trade.
Registered apprentices
Individuals in a supervised work training program in a designated trade within their provincial or territorial jurisdiction. To complete the training, the apprentice must be registered with the appropriate governing body, usually a ministry of education, ministry of labour or trade-specific industry governing body.
Registrations
The reference period is from January 1 to December 31, 2023.
Trade qualifiers or trade challengers
Individuals who have worked in a specific trade for an extended period of time, without having ever been an apprentice, and who have received certification from a jurisdiction. This is usually done via a skills assessment in the trade.
Products
The product "Canadian Apprenticeship Registrations and Certifications: Interactive Tool" is now available as part of the series Statistics Canada - Data Visualization Products (71-607-X).
The product "Canadian Apprenticeship Longitudinal Indicators" is available in Statistics Canada – Data Visualization Products (71-607-X).
The following technical reference guide is now available: "Pathways indicators for registered apprentices in Canada, 2021." This guide is part of the Technical Reference Guides for the Education and Labour Market Longitudinal Platform (37200001).
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
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