Canada’s economic prosperity and global competitiveness rely on a highly skilled and adaptable workforce, but the country is facing a growing skills shortage.
The national unemployment rate rose to 7.1% in August 2025 – marking it the highest since 2016 – and in concert, nearly 700,000 skilled trades workers are expected to retire by 2028. In BC alone, WorkBC predicts 1.12 million job openings over the next decade (2024–2034) and nearly 10% of those openings will be in the construction industry.
The urgent need to create accessible and inclusive pathways to encourage workforce participation is now impossible to ignore. Without immediate and coordinated actions of academia, industry, and government, Canada risks undermining both economic growth and social progress.
Polytechnic institutes like the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) are ready to partner with industry and government in building a strong and resilient workforce where everyone thrives.
“As Canada works diligently to drive growth and secure long-term prosperity, we must continue to invest in people through purposeful and coordinated partnerships,” said Dr. Jeff Zabudsky, President of BCIT, in an opinion editorial published in the Vancouver Sun. “When we work together, we don’t just respond to change, we drive it.”
Read the full opinion editorial from Dr. Jeff Zabudsky, published in the Vancouver Sun on October 28, 2025, titled Building a stronger Canada requires people, partnerships and polytechnics.
Partner with BCIT
Access to skilled talent is a key driver of organizational success. As an Institute with a unique provincial mandate to fuel workforce development, BCIT graduates over 40,000 job-ready students annually across six sectors and with a 93% employment rate for degree grads. BCIT bridges the gap between education and employment – connecting businesses with skilled talent through co-ops, internships, industry projects, applied research, as well as offering a full range of credentials from single-credit courses to master’s degrees.
An example of a win-win collaboration between students and industry is with Canadian-based Earls Kitchen + Bar. Through the BCIT Industry-Sponsored Student Projects program, Earls sought expertise from Computing Diploma students to streamline its manual staff discount process. In just 12 weeks, BCIT students developed a sleek digitized system utilizing Google Wallet and Apple Wallet. Earls benefitted from having a business solution developed with minimal impact to the company, while students gained hands-on experience invaluable to their learning.
Learn more about opportunities to partner with BCIT, including how BCIT researchers, students, and faculty can help drive tangible solutions for your organization and workforce.