The Role of Worker‑Oriented Policies Reviving ProductivityGrowth in Canada THE ROLE OF WORKER‑ORIENTED POLICIES This work is published under the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed andarguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Member countries of the OECD. This document, as well as any data and map included herein, are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty overany territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area. ISBN 978-92-64-33287-4 (print)ISBN 978-92-64-45500-9 (PDF)ISBN 978-92-64-96436-5 (HTML) Photo credits:Cover © Aleksandar Todorovic/Shutterstock.com. Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) This work is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. By using this work, you accept to be bound by the terms of this licence(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Attribution– you must cite the work.Translations– you must cite the original work, identify changes to the original and add the following text:In the event of any discrepancy between the original work and thetranslation, only the text of the original work should be considered valid.Adaptations– you must cite the original work and add the following text:This is an adaptation of an original work by the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed inthis adaptation should not be reported as representing the official views of the OECD or of its Member countries.Third-party material– the licence does not apply to third-party material in the work. If using such material, you are responsible for obtaining permission from the third party and forany claims of infringement.You must not use the OECD logo, visual identity or cover image without express permission or suggest the OECD endorses your use of the work.Any dispute arising under this licence shall be settled by arbitration in accordance with the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) Arbitration Rules 2012. The seat of arbitration shallbe Paris (France). The number of arbitrators shall be one. Foreword Canada’s longstanding productivity challenges havebecome increasingly urgent amid significant structuralshifts related to demographic ageing, the net-zero transition, digitalisation and artificial intelligence, andglobal trade realignment. This Review provides concrete policy recommendations to support broadlyshared productivity growth in Canada by taking a labour market perspective with an emphasis on worker-oriented policies in relation to skills, job mobility and structural change. While reviving productivity growthin Canada requires a broad range of policies related to product, housing and financial markets, policiesthat support the adaptability of workers to structural transformation can contribute to this process andreinforce the effectiveness of growth-enhancing policy initiatives in other domains. Acknowledgements This report was by prepared by the Directorate for Labour, Employment and Social Affairs of the OECDunder the leadership of Stefano Scarpetta (Director) and Mark Pearson (Deputy-Director) and supervisedby Stephane Carcillo (Head of the Jobs and Income Division) and Glenda Quintini (Head of Skills andFuture Readiness Division). Chapter 1 was written by Alexander Hijzen. Chapters 2, 4 and 5 were writtenby Ali Bargu and Alexander Hijzen. The microdata analysis in Chapter 2 was conducted in collaborationwith Tahsin Mehdi (Statistics Canada) and Jonas Fluchtmann (OECD), while Chapter 4 benefitted frominputs by André Gariépy (legal expert) and Ana Damas de Matos (OECD). Chapter 3 was written by AdaZakrzewska and Roland Tusz. Agnes Puymoyen provided statistical assistance. Marc Simion providededitorial support. Alexander Hijzen co-ordinated the project and led the team. The report benefited fromdiscussions with numerous stakeholders in Canada. It also benefited from comments by representativesat Employment and Social Development Canada and delegates from the Committee of Employment,Labour and Social Affairs. The OECD gratefully acknowledges financial support from Employment andSocial Development Canada. Table of contents 3 Foreword Acknowledgements Executive summary 1 Overview 1.1. Introduction121.2. A complex challenge131.3. The role of skills171.4. The role of job mobility191.5. A focus on migrants24References27Notes29 2 The productivity challenge In Brief312.1. Introduction322.2. The productivity slowdown in Canada: The macro picture332.3. Beyond aggregate trends: A micro perspective402.4. The role of megatrends452.5. Concluding remarks52References53Annex 2.A. Microdata analysis57Notes58 3 Turning skills into growth: Unlocking Canada’s productive potential 61 In Brief623.1. Introduction: Why do skills and their use matter for productivity?643.2. Do adults have the skills to succeed in the labour market in Canada?653.3. Are adults in Canada using their human ca