Today, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce issued a report entitled Opportunity Found: Improving the Participation of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada’s Workforce. The report highlights productive initiatives to improve the workforce participation of Aboriginal peoples and the resulting competitiveness of employers. It also offers recommendations to the federal government and Canada’s businesses on measures both can take to provide Aboriginal peoples and communities with the tools to make these success stories the norm.
While the percentage of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples completing secondary school and post-secondary education is growing, the education success gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples remains wide. Canada’s employers cite the lack of skilled workers as their biggest barrier to being competitive, and the completion of high school is considered the minimum level of education required for employment. The education success gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians needs to shrink a lot more and a lot more quickly.