Literacy, Life and Employment: An Analysis of Canadian International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) Microdata

Literacy is vital to employment, productivity and a high standard of living. Yet, there are still a significant number of Canadians whose marginal literacy skills hinder personal, organizational and national success.

This report, based on a detailed analysis of the Canadian microdata from the International Adult Literacy Survey, explores the socio-economic, literacy, employment and learning characteristics of working-age Canadians with marginal literacy skills. It reinforces our understanding of the importance of addressing this group’s literacy needs and provides employers with concrete strategies for designing and implementing literacy initiatives that will help employees achieve a job standard of literacy skills.