The Apprenticeship Pathway

Skilled Trades and immigrant integration in Canada

The skilled trades industry has been plagued by labour shortages in recent years, which has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. Roughly 700,000 experienced tradespeople are expected to retire by 2028, while the number of young people entering the skilled trades has dropped nearly 30% in recent years.

This report shows that focusing on bringing immigrants into skilled trades is a promising remedy to this looming shortage. Skilled trades also offer more equitable employment opportunities for newcomers, who otherwise statistically earn 40% less than their Canadian counterparts. In fact, the data analyzed in this report shows that immigrants who complete trades qualifications in Canada often potentially experience more rapid earnings that native-born counterparts.

Although workers in skilled trades make up only about 2% of the Canadian workforce, they represent an essential group of occupations in sectors that are crucial for the Canadian economy, particularly as it rebuilds post-pandemic. Given the increasingly significant labour shortage in the skilled trades with current journeypersons close to retirement age and fewer young Canadians taking the apprenticeship path, immigrant workers are an important source of talent that must be leveraged. Not only would this be helpful for addressing the labour shortages in many skilled trades, it would also allow newcomers find well-paid jobs so that they and their families can thrive.