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This study investigates labour force access to adult education and skills development programs in [British Columbia] BC. The goal of the research is to identify the most effective way for BC's provincial government to increase the skills of the labour force as a means to decrease the impacts of anticipated labour and skills shortages. Using a case study analysis, four policy options are identified, including a Provincial Workplace Training Fund, Training Tax Credits, the [One] Per Cent Law and Adult Basic Education. Each policy option is subsequently evaluated against selected criteria. Evaluation of the policy options leads to a number of recommendations including the simultaneous implementation of two policy alternatives.

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Over the next 50 years, population aging will contribute to a dramatic decline in the European working age population. One important question for policy makers is to what extent an increase in labour force participation of migrants, their descendants, and women can compensate for the decline in labour supply. Thus it is relevant to know more about the factors which can encourage participation of these groups. In this report [the authors] examine the employment of second generation (children of immigrants) Turkish and young adult women from the majority population. [The authors] focus on the Turkish group since it is the largest single origin country group who also settled in different European countries allowing for examining differences among the second generation across countries of residence by using unique data allowing for this for the first time.

This report covers four European countries (Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Sweden) in which the largest share of the total Turkish population in Europe live. [The authors] give special attention to the effect of motherhood on employment. [The] findings show that policy and institutions matter for the employment of all women in society, irrespective of migrant origin. Still, levels of employment are lower for the Turkish second generation compared to women from the majority group in all countries. Being a mother has a negative impact on employment, but [the authors] do not find this association to vary by origin. Furthermore [the authors] find clear differences across the countries studied but again these differences are similar for women of the majority population and those of Turkish origin. Although [the authors] are unable to pinpoint the exact policies and institutional arrangements it seems to be the case that these are related to policies across the life course starting from educational to family policies. Findings make clear that policymakers must give special attention to the unique economic position and potential of women in general and the growing share of children of immigrants among them, whose employment behaviours will be essential to bolstering the European labour force in the future.

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Labour shortages or mismatches are a major factor inhibiting investment and economic development across [Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation] APEC. In order to establish an appropriate regional response to the supply of skilled labour it is necessary to adopt a comprehensive strategy for monitoring labour force demand and supply across the APEC region. This report outlines the reasoning.

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The Temporary Foreign Worker Program is legislated through the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. One of the key objectives of the program is to provide Canadian employers with access to temporary foreign workers when qualified Canadians or permanent residents are not available. This evaluation covers the portion of the program that is administered by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) for the period from 2011 to 2018. However, the most recent data is provided where relevant. It focusses on the following issues: labour market shortages and gaps; employers' efforts to hire resident labour before applying to the program; and impact of the program on wages and displacement.

Key findings include: (1) The program plays a crucial role in helping Canadian employers temporarily fill different types of labour needs that are most commonly recurrent and that employers prove unable to meet using other means; (2) The program helps protect jobs for Canadians and permanent residents, and can contribute to job creation and economic growth in some sectors; (3) Overall, there is no evidence pointing to a risk for job displacement or wage suppression at the national level in Canada. In 2019, temporary foreign workers represented only 0.49 per cent of the total labour force in Canada. There is, however, evidence of varying factors affecting employment and working conditions in localized labour markets. This points to some risk of job displacement or wage suppression in some specific sectors, occupations and regions; (4) Important challenges related to the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) process and related requirements may hinder the effectiveness of the program for some program users; (5) Administrative and financial barriers associated with using the program may explain why some employers do not use the program. It should be noted that other comparable employers in similar situations use the program; and (6) The program contributes towards ensuring that qualified Canadians or permanent residents are considered first for current job opportunities.

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Training teachers to impart quality Vocational Education and Training (VET) to the learners is a worldwide concern. Technology keeps upgrading and changing in a rapid phase. Teachers have a responsibility to upgrade their knowledge, and the same must be imparted among learners. Simultaneously, there have been debates in the field of education regarding whether the profession of teaching is a 'vocation' or 'calling.' Considering this two sides of a model, we need to analyze how prospective teachers identify teaching as a vocation and how vocation operates in one's own life. If teaching itself is a vocation, teachers themselves gain knowledge and know the existing social practices to choose the vocation. One needs to cultivate real interest in teaching to keep the students attentive, if he/she chooses teaching as a profession. More than that, preparing students to become learned professionals and showing the path to discover their own vocation are a challenging task. In this context, this paper discusses how Indian teachers in VET choose teaching as a profession in VET and how they constantly upgrade their knowledge in the changing situation. On the one hand, the paper gives an overview of the Indian VET system and the teacher training in VET in India. Furthermore, we will discuss the aspects mentioned above by focusing on the existing literature in the field and empirical findings of teaching quality in the different regions of India.

Published abstract.

The volume from which this chapter is taken is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 137.1084. Show less

This paper analyses the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake on population movements and employment situation, mainly in the three disaster-stricken prefectures (Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima Prefectures). As for population movements, emigration from the disaster-stricken areas has increased since the earthquake. In Fukushima Prefecture in particular, the number of young emigrants rose rapidly due to the impact of the accident at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station. The employment situation, as measured by the status of job offers and applications, in the three disaster-stricken prefectures, appears on the surface to be improving, as the number of new job offers is growing as a result of an increase in offers related to post-earthquake reconstruction and a recovery in production in the manufacturing industry. However, in fact, the employment situation remains severe, with the number of applicants for employment insurance benefits growing by around 40 per cent in the 10 months from the earthquake compared with the same period of the previous year. The earthquake has not had a significant impact on employment on a nationwide basis. However, in the three disaster-stricken prefectures, it has affected seriously through a mismatch between job offers and applicants. It is thus an urgent task to take measures to resolve the mismatch.

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Career and technical education (CTE) continues to face an annual shortage of qualified teachers in the profession. This shortage has caused an increase in the use of alternative certification/licensure pathways across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. These alternative pathways are highly divergent from state to state. Limited research has investigated the alternative certification/licensure requirements that may contribute to CTE teacher shortage. This predictive correlational study looked to determine if CTE alternative certification/ licensure requirements could predict CTE teacher shortages. It was found that CTE alternative certification/licensure requirements were not a good predictor of CTE teacher shortage.

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This research is about how one community college preserved and strengthened their technology internships during [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID with commitment and creativity. Although the college, employers, and students faced technical, logistical, and supervisory challenges in maintaining technology internships through the pandemic, the college was committed to ensuring their resilience because they were required for graduation. As a result, many interns had opportunities to gain new skills related to navigating virtual work arrangements. In addition, employers drew on interns to fill staffing shortages and internships continued to serve as a key bridge to technology employment during the pandemic.

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The 2001 American Hospital Association (AHA) Workforce Survey estimated that approximately 168,000 positions in hospitals were vacant. Research suggests that this shortage is likely to grow over the next 20 years. The focus of this issue is on the allied health workforce in the US. It examines the crisis in healthcare by looking at the role played by community colleges in training workers and includes the following articles: ‘Across the nation: unique delivery and inventive approaches’ (p. 10-14, 16-17) which provides information on a number of community colleges that are working with their communities to offer allied health programs; ‘A spark for cultural competence in nursing’ by Barbara Cordell (p. 18-21) which looks at the many avenues available to nursing students to develop their cultural competence; ‘Service learning: education through action’ by Frederick F. Andres, Janell B. Lang and Robin Lovejoy (p. 22-25) which looks at the partnership among the Toledo Hospital, Owens Community College (OCC) and other Northwest Ohio organisations to include service learning into the allied health curriculum; ‘Collaborative community: health education website’ by Setta McCabe (p. 26-28) which looks at the website created by four community colleges to provide comprehensive information on health education opportunities; ‘Allied health core curriculum: its time has come’ by M. LaCheeta McPherson (p. 30-35) which looks at the role of community colleges in meeting the health care needs of the nation; ‘Emerging innovation: allied health fields’ by Janell B. Lang (p. 36-39) which looks at the emerging fields in healthcare. Show less

The impact of the [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 pandemic has, in general, been considerably more severe on entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) than on larger organizations. This fact is critical to note since SMEs are the backbone of the Canadian economy, employing almost 90 per cent of all Canadians who work in the private sector. SMEs faced significant challenges even before the pandemic. Skills gaps and labour shortages have long been a feature of the Canadian economy and they remain a top concern for SMEs. The purpose of this report is twofold: First, it reviews existing research on SMEs' and entrepreneurs' skills, upskilling and training needs, and proposes options for better supporting them as they strive to recover from the pandemic and prepare for what comes next. In particular, this review highlights barriers and challenges faced by entrepreneurs who are members of equity-seeking groups, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Second, this report presents preliminary results from a survey on skills and competencies (a survey that is still in the field as of June 2021) and from a set of focus groups conducted as part of the same project.

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