Employment training barriers are located within workplaces rather than educational institutions. Participants in employer-sponsored and workplace training are more likely to be well-educated persons in high wage jobs. Women receive less training than men; immigrant men receive less training than their Canadian counterparts. The provision of training for low-wage workers and workers with low literacy skills is viewed as not contributing much to the economic welfare of the employer.

The literature review also identified the elements of a responsive lifelong learning system. Such a system would: recognize the needs of adult learners and their prior learning; be supportive, flexible, accessible, available, relevant, respectful, learner-centred, coordinated and integrated; and would emphasize cooperative and collaborative learning rather than competitive learning.

Major gaps in the literature were identified as including gaps in knowledge about:

• Perceived and actual barriers experienced by non-participants in relation to learning opportunities.
• The differences between formal and informal learning, and between intentional and incidental informal learning.
• The potential role of formal educational institutions in supporting and recognizing informal learning activities.
• The interaction among various types of barriers.
• Barriers associated with informal learning.
• The economic benefits of informal learning.
• Changes in barriers over transition periods.
• The role of personal identity as a learner.
• Alternative methods for assisting adult learners to fund their formal and informal learning activities.
• The application of existing research-based knowledge.