Main themes of the event included women's participation in the labour market as well as improving the outcomes and opportunities for apprenticeships.

The second annual meeting of the Canada-European Union (EU) Dialogue on Employment, Social Affairs and Decent Work took place in Ottawa on 14-15 November 2018, and included a site visit at the Canadian e-commerce company Shopify on 16 November 2018.

Main themes included supporting women’s participation in the labour market and improving outcomes and opportunities related to apprenticeships. The meeting was chaired by Gail Mitchell from Employment and Social Development Canada, and by Manuela Geleng and Lluis Prats from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion.

Participants included public servants from the European Commission, a variety of European Stakeholders, as well as Canadian public servants and stakeholders.

Discussions during the meeting covered a range of topics, including:

• addressing the gender wage gap
• promoting women in leadership positions
• vocational education and training; apprenticeships and lifelong learning
• understanding and meeting future skills
• integrating migrants and newcomers into the labour market

Main sessions

The dialogue included plenary and breakout sessions. Plenary sessions involved all dialogue participants, while breakout sessions covered two specific themes: gender issues with a focus on the participation of women in the labour market; and vocational education and training, apprenticeships and lifelong learning.

Breakout sessions included those delegates that had a speciality in the area from both Canada and the European Union. All sessions began with presentations from experts or industry experts (both external stakeholders and government officials), and were followed by open discussions between all session participants.