Future Skills Centre invests $7.65M to transition displaced workers
By PLANT STAFF
Industry Government Manufacturing Future Skills Centre government manufacturing skills transition workersInnovation projects will test and evaluate approaches to support thousands of workers facing career transitions.
TORONTO — Mid-career workers displaced by technology or other factors will get some help retraining and improving their skill levels.
Future Skills Centre – Centre des Compétences is investing $7.65 million in 10 innovation projects that will help identify the best training opportunities for mid-career workers.
The centre, funded by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Program, says the projects, from skills assessment platforms and apprenticeships, to upskilling via a virtual reality simulator, will allow thousands of Canadians to participate in testing these approaches to skills development.
Many of these projects will engage mid-career workers in specific sectors that are experiencing, or are at-risk of, disruption and displacement, and help to identify ways to transition them into high-growth job opportunities. Others will explore common denominator barriers to successful career transitions and improving current services.
Examples of projects include:
• In Calgary, exploring training types to help prepare and connect highly skilled oil and gas workers with high-demand jobs in the growing tech sector
• In Nova Scotia, assessing the effectiveness of a virtual reality upskilling program for professional truck drivers
• In Oshawa and Kitchener-Waterloo, identifying the specific skills needed by at-risk auto workers to transition to high-demand jobs in the mold-making and injection-molding trades.
• Testing training models that would upskill cashiers and meat processing workers across Canada for higher skilled jobs in the food and retail sectors.
• In Manitoba, assessing enhanced training programs for adult learners who experience “Learner Shock,” including feelings of frustration, confusion, and anxiety about mid-career transitions.
• Exploring upskilling opportunities that best support mid-career workers with disabilities across Canada, who are particularly vulnerable to displacement in today’s changing labour market
Full project descriptions can be viewed here.
