A national careers strategy would help win in the future of work. Here’s how

Employers and job seekers alike are struggling in the current climate. Recent data from Statistics Canada shows elevated youth unemployment and lacklustre private sector hiring are a drag on employment rates.

As Canada flirts with a recession, a recent Nanos Research Group poll shows workers’ perceptions of their job security have reached lows not seen since May 2020. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business found that pervasive labour shortages cost Canadian small businesses more than $38 billion in 2022 and are exacerbating the current cost-of-living crisis.

If Canada fails to take pre-emptive measures to build a sustainable workforce, these challenges will intensify.

Career Development in 2040, a recent report from Creative Futures and the charitable organization CERIC, identified 10 major trends that will shape Canada’s labour market into 2040. These trends — ranging from climate change to geopolitical conflict to generational shifts — underscore the profound disruptions ahead.

However, amid these challenges lies significant opportunity.

By investing in career development, Canada can unlock a more prosperous and equitable future. A national careers strategy is essential to building an adaptable workforce that will flourish, not falter, in our increasingly complex world.

Only one in five Canadian adults has accessed career services — nearly half the average (39 per cent) among other OECD countries, according to the OECD survey of career guidance for adults. That’s because Canada has a “fail-first” career supports system. Publicly funded career services are only available to those experiencing a career disruption, such as being laid off or injured at work.

This contributes to a “general culture in which the average working adult believes they do not need career services,” according to a recent report, “Hidden Sector, Hidden Talent,” by future-of-work research agency Challenge Factory and CERIC.

However, individuals, businesses and the economy stand to realize immense gains through a comprehensive, national approach to career development. Career development equips people with awareness of their strengths and values, as well as labour market knowledge, enabling them to nimbly navigate a rapidly changing labour market.

It has positive impacts on mental health and poverty rates. Effective career guidance contributes to faster and more successful career transitions. According to research from the European Lifelong Guidance Policy Network, career development also reduces school dropout rates and increases employee satisfaction and engagement. 

While the federal government has made significant investments in skills training, a piecemeal approach to retraining is not a substitute for broadly accessible career supports. Canadians need the knowledge to assess their best next career move before jumping into skills training.

So, what could a national careers strategy look like? First, Canada needs to expand funding to make career development more widely available. This will proactively equip people to thrive — rather than waiting to catch them when they fall. Governments could fund career development service providers to partner with employers or provide employer-matched funding for employee career development.

Employers could extend health benefits to cover career services, as has been seen in Quebec. Businesses would benefit from more engaged, productive employees and a talent pool with in-demand skills — a boon to Canada’s economy.

Increasing public awareness of the value of career development is also important. Canada has as many career development professionals as it does pharmacists — but most adults have never accessed career services. An annual career checkup would enable Canadians to develop the skills to make decisions that will serve them throughout their lives.

Developing a national careers strategy is a bold and essential step to equip Canada’s workforce and economy for the imminent challenges we’re facing. The future of work isn’t an indefinable, distant prospect. It’s a raging river at our doorstep. Canada can build a bridge to prosperity — or be swept up in the current of change. 

Candy Ho, PhD, is board chair at CERIC, a national charitable organization advancing career development in Canada, and a professor of educational studies at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in B.C. Taryn Blanchard, PhD, is head of research at Challenge Factory, a Toronto-based future-of-work research agency and consultancy.