The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated and intensified pre-existing trends such as automation and digitization while forcing society to rethink many of our assumptions, from the way we work and learn to our socioeconomic structures and systems.  COVID-19 has also given rise to new trends, including a newfound appreciation of nature and avoidance of crowds and public spaces. While some changes may be temporary, or relatively weak signals of potentially lasting change, they could have longer term implications for the labour market.

It is critical that we understand the breadth of potential changes ahead, to better prepare workers for the future. By using the data from Brookfield’s Yesterday’s Gone report, we are going to examine eight megatrends and their likely impact on Canadian workers by 2030.