Canada鈥檚 smallest businesses lead the way in employee training, investing nearly $2,000 per employee on average each year according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business鈥� (CFIB) latest report. These findings challenge the view that small firms are slower to invest in training than their larger counterparts, who spend $1,713 per worker.
In Saskatchewan, small business owners invest over $500 million dollars each year on all types of employee training, which is an average of $31,512 per business. This equates to over 90 hours, or more than two full work weeks, of training for every employee on average.
Informal or 鈥渙n-the-job鈥� training is a key investment for small business, totaling $9 billion annually, making up 64 per cent of the $14 billion small and medium business invests in training. In total, informal training is offered by 90 per cent of small and medium businesses, and is done without any government credits or grants.
鈥淔ormal training is important, but there is no substitute for what you learn on the job,鈥� said CFIB president Dan Kelly. 鈥淚nformal training provides both foundational skills and key industry techniques that simply can鈥檛 be learned in a classroom setting. There鈥檚 a reason that employers value work experience above almost everything else.鈥�
Inexperienced workers make up 18 per cent of new hires in small firms, versus only nine per cent in their larger counterparts. Small businesses invest an average of over $4,200 training each new, inexperienced employee 鈥� much higher than the investment of training an employee with experience. Although 85 per cent of
small and medium businesses believe it is their responsibility to train new workers, many small firms will never see a return on that investment. Sixty per cent fear that employees will receive training, and then leave.
鈥淭oo often, small businesses train employees only to see big business and the public sector swoop in and poach them away,鈥� added Kelly.
While there have been small steps that recognize the unique training needs of small businesses, all governments need to do more. CFIB is calling on the federal parties, as well as provincial and territorial governments to even the playing field by offering a new training tax credit that recognizes informal training. Sixty per cent of small and medium business owners say such a credit would boost their ability to train tomorrow鈥檚 workforce.
鈥淚ndependent businesses take pride in training Canada鈥檚 workforce, but 鈥榳e train, they gain鈥� is not sustainable,鈥� concluded Kelly
