Quality of Employment in Canada
Training participation, 2022

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In the 12 months ending in November 2022, just under a third (30.9%) of workers in Canada had participated in job-related training outside the formal education system. Participation in training varied notably by level of education, potentially reinforcing skills gaps between workers with different levels of educational attainment. In the 12 months ending in November 2022, 39.8% of workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher had participated in training, compared with 17.0% of those with a high school diploma or less. Public sector employees (42.9%) were more likely than self-employed workers (27.6%) or private sector employees (27.1%) to have participated in job-related training.

Participation in job-related training offers benefits to both workers and businesses in a context of ongoing societal and technological change. Training helps workers become more employable or provides skills that can help them take on more responsibilities with their current employer. For businesses, training can improve productivity and make employees more confident and motivated in their jobs.

The training participation indicator is the share of workers who took part in job-related non-formal education and training over the previous 12 months. The concept of non-formal training refers to any kind of structured training, courses, or seminars taken outside the formal education system. While many employers cover all costs associated with job-related training, other forms of training may be self-funded or sponsored by the federal or provincial governments. Non-formal education and training is distinct from informal, or on-the-job training which refers to day-to-day learning at work based on observations or interactions with colleagues.

Data and analyses for this indicator are mostly based on a supplement to the Labour Force Survey collected in November 2022. The estimates are not adjusted for seasonality and refer to the population aged 25 to 64. Additional data points from the Adult Education and Training Survey (AETS) and the Access and Support to Education and Training Survey (ASETS) are also reported for the same age group.

Historical trends

Based on data from the LFS, 30.9% of workers aged 25 to 64 had participated in job-related training in the 12 months ending in November 2022.

According to results from the AETS, the proportion of workers aged 25 to 64 who had participated in job-related training over the previous 12 months was similar in 2002 at 31%. This was up from 1993 (26%) and 1997 (23%)^Note . Based on data from the ASETS, in 2008, 36.3% of employed 25-to 64-year-olds had taken part in job-related non-formal education or training during the previous 12 months.

A recent snapshot

In the 12 months ending in November 2022, participation in job-related non-formal education and training was relatively similar across the provinces, with Alberta recording one of the highest rates at 32.5%, while Ontario (29.9%) and Manitoba (30.0%) posted somewhat lower rates.

The likelihood of taking part in job-related training varied notably by level of education. In the 12 months ending in November 2022, 4 in 10 (39.8%) workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher had participated in training, compared with 3 in 10 (29.3%) among workers with postsecondary education below the bachelor’s and fewer than 2 in 10 (17.0%) among those with a high school diploma or less.^Note 

While the training participation rate was relatively similar for workers aged 25 to 34 (32.5%), 35 to 44 (33.7%) and 45 to 54 (31.8%), workers aged 55 to 64 (23.9%) were less likely to have taken training in the previous 12 months, pointing to possible challenges in ensuring that workers of all ages keep up with ongoing technological and societal changes. Overall, women (33.1%) were slightly more likely to have participated in training than men (29.0%).

Although self-employed workers must fund their own training or obtain financial support from other sources such as the federal or provincial governments, they may have more freedom than employees to take time off for training and other learning activities. In the 12 months ending in November 2022, self-employed workers (27.6%) were about as likely as private sector employees (27.1%) to have taken job-related training. Participation in job-related training was higher in the public sector, where more than 4 in 10 employees (42.9%) had taken part in job-related training during the previous 12 months.

Immigrants represent a growing proportion of the labour force and play a critical role in addressing skills shortages across the country. In the 12 months ending in November 2022, employed immigrants were less likely (27.4%) to have received job-related training than workers born in Canada (32.4%). The lower prevalence of training participation among employed immigrants was observed despite a larger proportion of them holding a bachelor’s degree or higher (53.0%) compared with workers born in Canada (33.0%).

In the 12 months ending in November 2022, part-time workers (26.5%) were less likely to have taken training than full-time workers (31.5%), but there was little difference between permanent (31.5%) and temporary employees (31.2%).

Another key factor which influenced access to training among employees was the size of the firm for which they were working. More than a third (36.2%) of employees working in organizations with over 500 employees had participated in job-related training in the 12 months ending in November 2022. In comparison, 21.8% of employees working in firms with less than 20 employees had taken job-related training.

Among employees, the training participation rate varied notably by industry, partly reflecting differences in the share of jobs in the public and private sectors and the size of organizations. In the 12 months ending in November 2022, nearly half of employees in utilities (48.6%) and public administration (47.6%) had taken part in training, compared with slightly over 1 in 10 in agriculture (13.6%) and accommodation and food services (13.1%).

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