HRSDC-IC-SSHRC Skills Research Initiative

Working Paper Series

Les rendements de la formation en entreprise : étude des entreprises canadiennes, by Benoit Dostie and Marie-Pierre Pelletier.

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Abstract

This article looks at the impact of various types of workplace training on productivity, based on data from the Workplace and Employee Survey (WES), a linked longitudinal survey conducted by Statistics Canada, for the period from 1999 to 2002. The impact of the various types of training on productivity is measured by means of an estimated Cobb–Douglas production function in which the investment in human capital is considered as a production input. This study is distinguished by the fact that the enterprise’s decision is also modelled, which permits control for the selection bias associated with training decisions. Based on the survey findings, it can be concluded that formal training results in higher productivity gains than does informal training. It can also be concluded that the lack of control for the selection bias means that the impact of formal and informal training on an enterprise’s productivity is overestimated.