Students returning to school this fall aren't the only ones upgrading their skills and knowledge. Employees of small firms are receiving more job training than ever before, according to a recent study by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.
The CFIB report shows that 56% of small businesses increased the amount of time and money spent on employee training during the past three years. New employees get an annual average of 113 hours of informal training, such as tutoring and mentoring, and 23 hours of formal training including classroom courses, seminars and workshops.
"That represents well over three 40-hour full-time weeks per new employee and a significant investment of time and money for the firm's owner," says Catherine Swift, president of CFIB.
The reasons behind the increase in training vary. Two-thirds of small firms say they turn to training to quickly integrate new hires, to be more competitive or to upgrade under-qualified employees. About half the respondents say they train employees to update their IT skills, while employee retention was also a key factor cited by employers.
The study also looked at employers' perceptions of how educational institutions prepare graduates for employment. Only 47% indicated they were satisfied with the level of job readiness of the high school graduates they hired, while 64% were satisfied with university grads. Satisfaction levels jumped to 71%, however, with graduates from private training institutions.
"This sends a clear message that we need to take a closer look at the strategies we use in getting graduates ready to enter the workforce," says Swift.
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