B. Exploring and Preparing for the World of Work · Exploring and Preparing for the World of Work

Trends Shaping the World of Work

B1 B1.1About 70 minutes

Learning goals

I can identify technological, economic and social trends that are changing work in Canada and around the world.
I can read current labour-market facts and check their date and source.
I can analyse how a trend might affect my own education and career choices.

Words to know

trend
A general direction of change that continues over time, such as more people using AI tools at work.

labour market
The "marketplace" where workers offer their skills and employers look for workers. It includes jobs, wages and who is looking for work.

automation
Using machines or computer programs to do tasks that people used to do.

artificial intelligence (AI)
Computer systems that do tasks that normally need human thinking, such as writing text, recognizing images or making predictions.

globalization
The growing connection of countries through trade, travel, communication and companies that work in many countries.

gig economy
Work made up of short jobs or tasks ("gigs"), often arranged through an app, instead of one ongoing job with one employer.

unemployment rate
The percentage of people in the labour force (working or looking for work) who do not have a job but are looking for one.

aging population
A population in which the share of older people is growing.

Hook: your grandparent's first job

Ask an older relative about their first job and you may hear about punching a paper time card, getting paid by cheque, or finding the job in a newspaper ad. Today a first job might be found through an app, scheduled by software, and paid by direct deposit. Some jobs your grandparents knew have almost disappeared (think of switchboard operators), and some jobs you can apply for did not exist when your parents were in Grade 10 (think of social media coordinators or drone pilots).

Work keeps changing. The changes that last and build over time are called trends. The Career Studies curriculum asks you to identify recent trends in work and analyse how they might affect your own future choices. That is today's job.

Three kinds of trends

It helps to sort trends into three groups.

Technological trends come from new tools. Examples: automation (self-checkouts, warehouse robots), artificial intelligence (AI) tools that write, translate or analyse data, remote and hybrid work made possible by video calls and cloud software, and app-based platforms that connect workers with customers.
Economic trends come from changes in money, trade and business. Examples: globalization (a product designed in Ontario, built in another country and sold worldwide), the gig economy, the shift to a green economy (electric vehicles, heat pumps, energy-efficient buildings), and periods when employers hire fewer new workers.
Social trends come from changes in people and values. Examples: an aging population, a more diverse workforce and a focus on equity and inclusion, people expecting work–life balance, and the need for lifelong learning because skills go out of date faster.

Sorting trends into technological, economic and social groups helps you see what is driving each change. Real trends often overlap.

Technology: automation and AI

Automation is not new. Factories have used robots for decades. What is newer is AI that can do tasks involving language and information, such as drafting emails, summarizing reports or writing computer code.

Here is what Canadian data says (always check the date and source):

Statistics Canada estimated, using 2021 Census data, that 31% of Canadian workers held jobs highly exposed to AI with low complementarity (AI might take over many of their tasks), 29% held highly exposed jobs with high complementarity (AI is more likely to help the worker than replace them), and 40% held jobs that were not highly exposed. (The Daily, September 3, 2024.)
In a March 2026 survey, 35.9% of Canadian workers said they had used generative AI tools in their main job in the past 12 months. Use was highest in professional, scientific and technical services (65.6%) and lowest in accommodation and food services (16.3%). (Statistics Canada, The Daily, July 30, 2026.)

What this means: AI tends to change tasks inside jobs more often than it wipes out whole jobs. Workers who can use these tools well, check their output, and do what the tools can't (build relationships, use judgment, handle hands-on work) are in a stronger position.

About 60% of workers (31% + 29%) were in jobs highly exposed to AI, but about half of those were jobs where AI is more likely to help than replace the worker.

Economy: gigs, globalization and a tough youth job market

Gig work. Statistics Canada found that the share of workers doing gig work rose from 5.5% in 2005 to 8.2% in 2016 (about 1.7 million people). Gig work offers flexibility, but often no guaranteed hours, benefits or pension. Ontario now has a law for app-based ride-share, delivery and courier workers (you will learn about it in the next lesson).
Globalization. Companies can hire, buy and sell around the world. This creates jobs in exporting industries, but some work can be moved to other countries. Trade disputes and tariffs can affect jobs in industries like manufacturing.
The youth job market right now. In September 2026 the unemployment rate was 6.5% for Canada and 7.0% for Ontario, but 13.0% for young people aged 15 to 24 (Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, released October 9, 2026). A September 2026 report from the Centre for the Study of Living Standards found that the unemployment rate for teenagers aged 15 to 19 had reached 20.3% in the second quarter of 2026, up from 12.6% in early 2023. It described a "low-hire, low-fire" job market: not many layoffs, but employers hiring fewer new workers, which hits young job seekers hardest.

In September 2026, young people aged 15 to 24 had an unemployment rate about twice the overall Canadian rate. Numbers like these change every month.

Society: an aging population and changing values

Aging population. In the 2021 Census, 19.0% of Canadians were 65 or older, up from 16.9% in 2016. More than 1 in 5 people of working age (21.8%) were between 55 and 64, close to retirement (Statistics Canada, The Daily, April 27, 2022). As many workers retire, employers in fields such as health care and the skilled trades need to replace them, and an older population needs more health care and home care.
Equity, diversity and inclusion. Canada's workforce includes people of many cultures, languages, abilities and identities. Employers are expected to treat everyone fairly and remove barriers. First Nations, Métis and Inuit populations are younger on average and grew faster than the non-Indigenous population between 2016 and 2021 (Statistics Canada, 2021 Census), so Indigenous youth are a growing part of Canada's future workforce.
Work–life balance and well-being. Many workers now expect flexible schedules, mental-health support and reasonable hours. (You studied school/life/work balance in Unit A.)
Lifelong learning. Because tools and jobs keep changing, most people will need to keep learning new skills throughout their working lives.

Check the date and the source

A labour-market fact without a date and a source is just a rumour. Statistics Canada publishes the Labour Force Survey every month, so job numbers go out of date quickly. Good sources include Statistics Canada, the Government of Canada's Job Bank, and the Ontario government. When you read a claim like "robots will take half of all jobs," ask: Who said this? When? Based on what data?

Worked example

Let's analyse a trend and its effect on one student

Jordan is in Grade 10. Jordan loves drawing and is thinking about a career in graphic design. Analyse how the AI trend might affect Jordan's future choices.

Name the trend and its type. Generative AI tools that can make images and text. This is a technological trend (with economic effects).
Find current evidence. In March 2026, 35.9% of Canadian workers had used generative AI tools at work, and use was highest (65.6%) in professional, scientific and technical services, the industry group that includes design services (Statistics Canada, July 30, 2026).
How might it change the work? Some routine tasks (quick drafts, resizing images) can be done faster with AI. New tasks appear: directing the tools, checking quality, and handling questions about copyright and ethics. Human strengths matter more: original ideas, understanding what a client really needs, and communicating.
How might it affect Jordan's choices? Jordan could build digital literacy with design and AI tools, keep a portfolio of original work, take courses such as visual arts and communications technology, and practise talking with "clients" (for example, making posters for school clubs).
Keep watching. Jordan sets a reminder to check Job Bank's outlook for graphic designers each year, because trends change.

The AI trend is more likely to change the tasks in graphic design than to make the career disappear. Jordan's best response is to add skills (digital tools, originality, communication) rather than to give up the interest, and to keep checking current information.

Just for fun

Before alarm clocks were cheap and common, some workers in Britain and Ireland were paid to be "knocker-uppers": they walked the streets before dawn tapping on bedroom windows with long poles to wake people for their shifts. Technology (the alarm clock) eventually made the job disappear, which is a trend story in one sentence.

Hands-on activity

Then-and-now interview and trend hunt

You need: a notebook or phone, and an adult who has worked (a parent, grandparent, neighbour or family friend).

Ask the adult: What was your first job? How did you find it? How were you paid and scheduled? What tools did you use? How has your kind of work changed since then?
Write each change they describe and label it T (technological), E (economic) or S (social). Some may get two labels.
Trend hunt: find one news story or report from the last three months about a work trend in Canada. Write the headline, the source, the date and one number it gives.
Write two sentences: This trend might affect my future choices because... One thing I could do about it is...

What to look for: at least four changes sorted correctly, a news item with a real source and date, and a specific personal action (a course, a skill or an experience), not just "it will be hard."

Your turn

Name the three kinds of trends used in this lesson and give one example of each.

What is the difference between automation and AI?

In September 2026, what was the unemployment rate for Canadians aged 15 to 24, and how did it compare with the overall rate?

What does "high complementarity" with AI mean for a job?

Give one advantage and one disadvantage of gig work.

Why does an aging population create job openings?

Why should every labour-market fact you use have a date and a source?

More practice: warm-up

What is a trend?

Is the move to electric vehicles mainly a technological, economic or social trend? (Any reasonable answer with a reason.)

What does the unemployment rate measure?

Name one reliable source of Canadian labour-market information.

What share of Canadians were 65 or older in the 2021 Census?

More practice: on your own

A friend says, "AI is going to replace every job, so there's no point planning a career." Use evidence from this lesson to respond.

Explain the phrase "low-hire, low-fire" job market and why it is hard on young people.

How might globalization affect a person who works in an Ontario auto-parts factory? Give one possible positive and one possible negative effect.

Choose one social trend and explain how it could create a new kind of job.

The gig-worker share rose from 5.5% in 2005 to 8.2% in 2016. By how many percentage points did it rise? Is that a big change?

Challenge

Pick a career you are curious about. Identify one technological, one economic and one social trend that could affect it, and explain one action you could take now for each.

A website says, "70% of today's Grade 10 students will work in jobs that don't exist yet." How would you decide whether to trust and use this claim?

Teen unemployment rose from 12.6% (early 2023) to 20.3% (Q2 2026). What could a Grade 10 student do in this situation to improve their chances of getting work experience? Give at least three strategies.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which of these is a social trend affecting work?

In September 2026, the unemployment rate for Canadians aged 15 to 24 was about:

A job with high exposure and high complementarity to AI is one where:

What is the gig economy?

Which is the best way to check a labour-market statistic?

Which response to the AI trend is most useful for a student who wants a design career?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Expectation B1.1 asks students to identify recent technological, economic and social trends in work (the curriculum's examples include automation, AI, the gig economy, globalization, an aging population and equity and inclusion) and to analyse how they might affect their own choices. This lesson uses current Canadian data, all dated and sourced. Numbers such as the unemployment rate change monthly; if you are reading this later, look up the latest Labour Force Survey together.

How to help at home: Be the interview subject for the activity. Talk honestly about how your work, or work in your family, has changed. If you have lived or worked in another country, share how work there differed.

Common difficulties:

Using numbers with no date or source. Ask, "Where is that from, and when?"
Fear or fatalism ("AI will take all the jobs"). Steer toward actions: skills, courses and experiences the student can choose.
Mixing up a one-time event with a trend. A trend continues over time.

Sensitivity: The youth job market is tough right now. If your teen is struggling to find work, reassure them that the data shows this is a market-wide problem, not a personal failing.