Ottawa offers $1.5B to help retrain Canadians in hard-hit sectors

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government will send $1.5 billion in job-training support to the provinces and territories to help Canadians in industries hit hard by the pandemic.

The funding will help laid-off workers in sectors like construction, transportation and hospitality re-enter the workforce by bolstering access to skills training and employment services, Trudeau said Friday.

“Now, more than ever, the labour market is evolving quickly and workers need to be able to develop new skills,” he said.

The money comes at a critical time, with a new survey from Statistics Canada finding nearly one-third of businesses do not know how long they can keep going under existing conditions brought by the second wave of COVID-19.

Nearly 40 per cent of businesses have laid off staff since March and nearly one in five report they will be compelled to take drastic action in less than six months if cash flow does not improve.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate barely budged last month, sitting at 8.9 per cent compared with 9.0 per cent in September, to leave 1.8 million people out of work.

Canadian Chamber of Commerce chief economist Trevin Stratton said the outlook for business owners is “grim” and called for sector-specific support to help the hospitality and arts-and-entertainment industries.

“The one-size-fits-all approach to support programs is not sustainable through 2022, and it may not be particularly useful at this stage of the pandemic,” he said.