Strengthening our workforce

We know that more than anything, it’s people who drive our economy forward. A skilled and resilient workforce means we can rise to the challenges we’re facing together, deliver major projects, infrastructure, services we all rely on and support growth in the sectors that will keep our economy strong into the future.

Through this strategy, we will prioritize improvements to our trades training system to build capacity, and support people to access more possibilities in the job market. Over the next decade, close to 100,000 job openings are expected in the skilled trades, including those that will support our future economy, such as electricians, welders, heavy duty equipment technicians, heavy equipment and crane operators, and more.

We brought back the skilled trades certification system and are seeing a record-breaking number of people register as apprentices, earn certification and make their way to higher wages, and better navigating the evolving industry needs. As more major projects break ground, we know that apprentice registrations will increase, so we are focusing on strengthening our trades training system.

• B.C. is investing in its hardworking people and making sure more people can access skills training and complete their apprenticeships. We’re funding 28,000 trades training seats, including 21,800 apprentice seats across the province.
• There are nearly 50,000 registered apprenticeships and over 11,000 youth participants in B.C. — this is the highest apprenticeship number the province has ever seen. In 2024 -25, we saw more than 16,000 new people register as apprentices in B.C.
• Through TradeUpBC we have supported more than 750 experienced Red Seal professionals to access new and specialized training opportunities, including professional development and short-term training.

We’re working to make it easier for skilled workers to move to B.C. from across the country through our commitment to streamlining labour mobility and attracting global talent by improving international credential recognition. B.C. is making credential recognition from other provinces and countries faster, easier and fairer — so skilled tradespeople and professionals can get to work sooner. This helps us attract top talent and fill labour shortages across sectors. 

Additionally, the B.C. Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) provides a pathway to permanent residency for international workers who have the experience and qualifications needed in British Columbia. The program nominates people in high-demand jobs to stay in the province and fill labour demands in priority sectors, such as health care, child care, and construction, creating high economic impact in the province and supporting our growth and development.

• We’re making sure our community has appropriate health care support. Through a new, expedited credential-recognition process for U.S. trained and certified nurses and doctors, we have registered 535 U.S. nurses, 104 nurse practitioners, and 29 U.S.-trained physicians.
• Since 2020, the BC PNP has nominated more than 35,000 skilled workers, entrepreneurs and talented international students who are working in critical sectors across B.C.’s economy, such as technology, health care, child care, construction, and more.
• We’re making sure more skilled professionals from across Canada are making B.C. their home. The amendments to Labour Mobility in Canada’s Free Trade Agreement makes it easier for professionals from across Canada to have their certifications recognized nationally, allowing them to explore opportunities in B.C. and fill labour shortages in key sectors.

B.C.’s labour force is among the best educated in the world and are leading the way, with talent and expertise to help build and grow our economy. But we need more people with skills to drive growth through key economic sectors, and to advance our major projects.

By focusing our training investments on the areas our growing economy needs most, we will strengthen our workforce so they can, in turn, support key economic sectors, such as natural resources (critical minerals mining, forestry, clean energy), manufacturing, and emerging technology. We’re working to advance skills training to take talent to the next level to drive the Canadian economy. Building targeted talent streams in our Work Integrated Learning at postsecondary institutions, through programs like the Future Skills Grant, scholarships and internships, and employer training grant, that will further strengthen our workforce to build the experience they need to succeed.

• B.C. currently has 4,000 student spaces in technology-related programs. This means more people can train in high-demand fields, such as cybersecurity, software engineering, data science, life sciences, creative tech, clean tech and agritech.
• Since 2017, B.C. colleges, institutions and universities have equipped students with the skills needed to help build our workforce in critical areas, including 66,965 graduates from engineering and applied science programs — 33% more graduates in 2024 than in 2018.
• B.C. is launching a second medical school at SFU to train more doctors — faster and closer to home — with applications for the first class of medical students, starting in fall 2025. This will be Western Canada’s first new medical school in 60 years.

B.C. is helping more people get the skills and support they need to start new careers and find good jobs. From tools to explore career options to on-the-job training, we’re making it easier to seize opportunities.

But we want to do more and make sure people in B.C. can properly prepare for the ever-evolving fields and the education curriculum must keep pace. So, we’re exploring potential partnerships between industry and post-secondary institutions, to prioritize and fast-track the skills needed for major projects and priority sector growth. By building tighter alliances between industry and training, we will make sure we have a skills-training system that can adapt to needs and expectations of our priority sectors.

In addition to helping more students gain work experience through co-ops, internships, clinical placements, community service and practicums, we’re providing support for on-the-job learning to help students get the hands-on experience they need to launch their careers. Employers benefit from training potential new employees.

• According to the 2025 B.C. Labour Market Outlook, over the next decade (2025-2035) there will be more than one million job openings in B.C. As B.C.’s population ages over the next decade, we anticipate 65% of the job openings will be to replace retiring workers. The remaining 35% of the 10-year total job openings — 365,000 new jobs — will be created through economic growth.
• Through the CanadaBC Labour Market Development Agreement, B.C. is increasing training and work experience for job seekers in the province through the Community and Employer Partnerships. More than 7,200 British Columbians have gained employment experience on 684 projects throughout the province.
• B.C. has invested $50 million in Mitacs to support 10,000 applied research internships in companies and organizations in a range of priority sectors, including technology and life sciences.

We’re building on the significant investments in skills training our government made through the StrongerBC: Future Ready Action Plan launched in 2023, which laid the foundation for people to access high-quality, affordable education and training in B.C.

Since launching, nearly 400,000 people in B.C. have been given greater access to affordable education and gaining or growing in-demand skills, including:

• Around 12,000 people have gained education through the Future Skills Grant, which covers $3,500 in eligible, short-term skills training programs. At least 74% of survey participants acknowledge they would not have done so without the grant.
• We’ve increased student spaces in technology-related programs by more than 4,000 annually since 2017. B.C. government’s investments in tech spaces have resulted in 33% more graduates in engineering and applied science in 2023-24 compared to 2017-18.
• More than 30,000 students and 432 schools across B.C. have participated in programs, courses, events, and other supports offered through the K-12 Career Connections and Dual Credit expansion initiatives.
• Training support has led 95% of forestry-sector transition training participants to find employment and almost 60% of post-training survey respondents indicated receiving a higher wage post-transition.
• More than 2,600 new student placements have been created through the Work Integrated Learning program.

Through the action plan, we also increased support for young students like expanding the Provincial Tuition Waiver Program, and investing $15 million in graduate scholarships over three years, adding $2,500 to each new graduate scholarship award.

The action plan has been successful in making education and training more accessible, affordable and relevant to help prepare people for the jobs of tomorrow, while also helping close the skills gaps that employers have been facing.