Solutions to Canada’s lagging productivity
Labour market productivity is anchored in individuals who can navigate uncertainty and adapt seamlessly.
Calgary, AB, Sept. 2 – Canada has a productivity problem.
The country’s lagging productivity is rooted in a variety of factors, including weak capital investment, a lack of a competitive business environment and an increasing gap between the supply and demand of the competencies required to perform the jobs in the economy.
The Productivity Project, a new series of six reports, aims to unpack those challenges and provide solutions to fix the significant gaps between skills the workforce supplies and those industry demands.
The study is a collaboration of experts from academia, industry and policy. Together, they address a pivotal question: How can human capital drive Canada’s productivity?
Key stats:
- Canada ranks second among 37 countries for having a highly educated workforce, but it also has the highest rate of underemployment among graduates.
- Fifty years ago, Canada’s productivity surpassed that of the United States. Now, it lags the U.S by 28 per cent.
- Canada ranks low on innovation metrics, standing at 15th out of 20 measured countries.
The solution: a reimagining of the systems that build Canada’s human capital. At its core, productivity is about people. People influence capital investment decisions, shape the business environment, provide essential leadership necessary for innovation and perform the hands-on work of jobs created in the economy.
Report 1, Productivity and People: Exploring human capital and productivity and Report 2, The Coming Storm: The eight forces facing regional labour markets are out now, with Reports 3-6 to be released in the coming months.
The research is a collaboration between the Canada West Foundation, Mount Royal University’s Institute for Community Prosperity, Alberta Centre for Labour Market Research, and LearningCITY Collective.
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Productivity and People Exploring human capital and productivity Read executive summary Read the full report |
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The Coming Storm The eight forces facing regional labour markets Read executive summary Read the full report |
Ruth Klinkhammer, Communications Director
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About the Canada West Foundation
The Canada West Foundation ensures that Western Canada’s priorities—backed by its economic strength—shape national policy through non-partisan research, bold solutions and strategic engagement. Our work is grounded in evidence and guided by a single aim: unlock the West’s potential so it can power Canada’s future.