The Future Skills Centre and Shift Insights published the Skills for Productivity, Prosperity and Well-Being in Canada Report, which is based on the OECD’s Programme for the International Assessments of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), a valuable global survey of adult skills data. The survey is an essential resource that aims to assist in generating enhanced strategies to improve the skills landscape, productivity, prosperity and well-being of Canadians. According to the report, with the release of new data, Canada has a once-in-a-decade opportunity to design and execute a research agenda that can fill knowledge gaps, identify exactly why and how skills matter to economic and social outcomes, and help shape policies and programs to improve Canada’s performance.

The report notes that a Canadian PIAAC Research Agenda should emphasize research initiatives that focus on skills as drivers (of productivity, prosperity and well-being), skills as outcomes (including their distribution and mechanisms of their acquisition and deterioration), and be supported by robust data infrastructure and enabling conditions (including accessible and linked data, and a Community of Practice to shape priorities, construct methodologies, and share insights).

For further information about the PIAAC data or to access the report, click here.