Literacy is central to the improvement and betterment of any society. Individuals cannot fully engage in social and political discourse, and are more likely to become less-than-equals in society without basic literacy to pursue their goals. On the individual level, more literate individuals tend...

How does time off from work affect an individual’s job prospects? A study by CLSRN affiliates Kory Kroft (University of Toronto), Fabian Lange (McGill University) and Matthew J. Notowidigdo (University of Chicago) entitled “Duration Dependence and Labor Market Conditions: Theory and...

Wage disparity can be driven by a number of different factors. Previous research has found evidence that disadvantaged workers often face a “glass ceilingâ€: a barrier that limits access to high-wage jobs. Because of data limitations, however, researchers have not been able to...

The demand for skilled trade persons in Canada is very strong and new apprenticeship registrations increased by threefold between 1991 and 2007. The number of apprenticeship completions however, did not increase and as a result average completion rates have dropped over the same period. A CLSRN...

Between 1970 and 2005, the share of total earnings in the Canadian labour market going to middle-class workers has fallen significantly, while the earnings share of higher-earnings workers has risen. Is the middle-class being hollowed out? A paper by CLSRN affiliate Charles Beach (Queen’s...

While not speaking either English or French is widely understood to be a serious barrier to employment and gainful remuneration in Canada, a study entitled “The effect of linguistic proximity on the occupational assimilation of immigrant men†(CLSRN Working Paper no. 144) by Alicia...

Examples of educational mismatch and overqualifcation in the labour market can often be found in the same office building – the clerical worker with a bachelor’s degree reporting to a manager with a high school education – as an example. Some have argued that mismatch in...

Individuals who enter the labour market with relatively low levels of education often find that they lack the necessary human capital and credentials needed to adapt to the rapidly changing labour market in Canada. The severe recession of the early 1980s and early 1990s coupled with the...