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Conference Paper Submission for the 2014 Cambridge
Business & Economics Conference:
Emerging Markets for Pacific Island Migrant Labour in
Canada to Promote Economic Development
By Anusha Mahendran and Adjunct Professor Thorsten Stromback
Curtin University, Western Australia
For correspondence:
Email: Anusha.Mahendran@cbs.curtin.edu.au
Phone: +61 402 295 653
ABSTRACT: In its report 'At Home and Away', the World Bank outlines an economic
development case for expanding labour mobility in the Pacific Region. Following on from
this, the labour markets in some developed countries are now partially open to Pacific Island
workers. However there may be other and greater opportunities for integration of regional
labour markets in other industry sectors. The World Bank have proposed that it should be left
to private and public sector employers to identify where these opportunities are, while the
Governments of respective countries should play a facilitating role. Nevertheless, to promote
a constructive dialogue it would be helpful to have some indications of the prospects for this
integration with respect to some countries and selected industry sectors. This paper fulfils this
indicative role by outlining relevant employment opportunities for Pacific Island migrant
workers in specific Canadian industry sectors. It has consequently contributed to informing
the World Bank’s promotion of the circular migration of labour within the Asia-Pacific
region.
Field of Research/Paper Track:
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Labour economics, Development economics
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INTRODUCTION
Many industry sectors within the Canadian economy have a long history of utilising
temporary foreign workers (TFWs) as important source of labour to help minimise labour
shortages that they face. In recent years Canada has experienced a historically high level of
permanent immigration driven by expanding employment opportunities. In recent years, this
has spilled over into temporary migration as the permanent immigration has been held back
by backlogs and delays in processing applications.
Thus, during the past decade, the yearly number of temporary immigrants has grown from
50,000 to 250,000, exceeding the number of permanent immigrants. Temporary immigration
is limited to two years but once in Canada many temporary immigrants find ways of
remaining in the country. As in Australia, the temporary migrants have become a significant
source for permanent immigration. Amongst the Canadian population support for immigration
has remained consistently high even though there have been falls in the earnings of native
born Canadians across birth cohorts (Beaudry & Green 2000). Strong support for immigration
has also been maintained despite there being significant reported declines in the earnings of
recently arrived immigrants (Green & Worskick 2004).
The policies relating to immigration within Canada have experienced considerable
modifications. Some relevant reforms that have occurred in recent times include:
1. An increase in the intake of immigrants entering under the points system
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2. Reweighting the points allocation system according to the personal characteristics of
applicants
3. Introduction of the Canadian Experience Class which was designed to make it easier
for applicants who have completed education or acquired previous work experience
within Canada to achieve landed immigrant status and become permanent residents
4. Introduction of the Quebec Immigrant Selection System and the Provincial Nominee
Programs (PNPs)
A temporary foreign worker within Canada is defined as an individual who has been issued
with a work permit to live and be employed within Canada, by Immigration Canada (Byl
2010). Canada is expected to admit approximately 100,000 immigrants who will qualify
under the federal skilled worker program, to work within the country. Canada’s federal skilled
worker program provides for the largest single stream of immigration by foreign workers into
Canada. The federal skilled worker program is centred around a points based metric system of
evaluation, where criteria such as the age, adaptability, level of education (including acquired
qualifications), language ability and relevant work experience of an applicant are used to
assess their likely potential to successfully migrate to and settle in Canada. Currently the
threshold for admission into Canada stands at 67 points which represents the points score that
a foreign applicant must attain in order to be allowed to seek employment opportunities
within the country as part of the federal skilled worker program.
With this growth in temporary migration the Canadian Government has moved to speed up
the cumbersome process for temporary entry. The critical factor is the so called Labour
Market Opinion (LMO), an assessment of how the recruitment would impact on Canadian
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residents. Recently, however, approved employers can apply an Expedited Labour Market
Opinion (E-LMO) that allows them to recruit workers without meeting the more stringent
conditions of the standard LMO.
Introduced in 2007, this scheme is still a pilot project and is restricted to employers in British
Columbia and Alberta. It is also restricted to a list of occupations that are deemed to be in
shortage in these two provinces. This list does not include only skilled occupations but also a
range of lower skilled occupations including food service personnel, hospitality room
attendants, residential cleaning, and retail salespersons industrial meat cutters, manufacturing
and processing labourers.
This relaxation of skill requirements might signal a significant departure from the traditional
preference for mainly skilled workers. However, as yet it is too early to judge the effect of
this initiative. An E-LMO is not sufficient for entry to Canada. In addition, foreign workers
need a resident visa and on arrival in Canada they have to satisfy an immigration officer that
they are likely to leave Canada when their visa expires. The use of temporary migration
programs by low-skilled workers will also be influenced by their limited prospects of
obtaining permanent residence after two years of working and residing in Canada. The
existing arrangements do no provide many avenues for low-skilled workers to seek permanent
residence. When, as is the situation at present, there appears to be persistent shortages of some
categories of low-skilled workers, this will limit employers’ use of the temporary foreign
workers.
Another recent innovation, the introduction of the Canadian Experience Class, to facilitate the
processing of applications for permanent residence from within Canada, might change this.
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So far, however, it is uncertain if and how this gateway will apply to low-skilled workers.
Recent policy statements released by the current Canadian Government seem to indicate that
they are wary about promoting the prospects of temporary low-skilled workers gaining
permanent resident status. Instead, the Canadian Government has proposed a four year cap for
work on a temporary visa. Having reached this cap, a migrant worker would then be barred
from getting another permit for six years. Even the province that has made most use of the
program, Alberta, has some reservations about the longer term benefits of large scale
temporary migration.
These recent developments aside, Canada has two long-standing schemes for temporary lowskilled workers; the Seasonal Agricultural Work Program (SAWP) and the Live-In Caregiver
program (LIC). The SAWP was established in 1966 and allows for the entry of foreign
worker (from Mexico and some Commonwealth Caribbean countries) for the purpose of
seasonal agricultural work to help minimise labour shortages within the Canadian agricultural
sector. Under SAWP, Canadian employers are required to ensure that minimum working
conditions are maintained for foreign workers. Canadian employers using SAWP must also
ensure the provision of other services such as housing assistance for the foreign employees
that they recruit. It is generally regarded as a model guest-worker scheme and served as the
blueprint for the Australian and New Zealand pilot scheme. SWAP is now a well-established
and accepted program and could in principle be expanded to allow for the entry of Pacific
Islanders. Alternatively, the favourable experience with SWAP might persuade the Canadian
Government to introduce a SWAP type program for other industries suited to the employment
of Pacific Islanders.
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The Live in Caregiver (LIC) program was introduced in 1981 and was originally referred to
as the Foreign Domestic Movement Program. Under this program temporary domestic foreign
workers are recruited and are allowed to be employed within Canada to care for people with
disabilities, children and the elderly. Also as part of the scheme the foreign employees are
required to live in the same home or place of residence of the people that they take care of and
work for. The minimum requirements, since 1992 for foreign workers to be eligible for the
LIC program include the following:
-Fluency in the English or French language
-Completion of formal education relevant to a Canadian secondary school degree
-Either 12 months of paid work experience which is relevant to the job they will be employed
in or six month of full time training
The LIC program is believed to have institutionalised the entrance of temporary foreign
domestic and care workers into Canada. Foreign workers who become employed in Canada as
part of the scheme are also provided with the opportunity to apply for permanent residence
once they have worker for a minimum of 24 months over a 3 year period. The LIC program
is, likely however, to be less relevant for Pacific Islander migrant workers looking for
employment opportunities in Canada. This is because most Pacific Islanders would not meet
the educational requirements stipulated for the LIC program. In addition, the LIC program is
not a temporary worker scheme but appears to be more of a gateway to permanent residence.
Some more detailed information about some of the temporary foreign worker programs
available in Canada is provided below.
As mentioned previously, there are currently a number of temporary foreign worker programs
within Canada for migrant workers. Some of these include the Seasonal Agricultural Worker
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Program, the Live-In Caregiver Program and the “Temporary Foreign Worker Program”
which includes the Low Skilled Worker Pilot Project (Byl 2010). A more detailed discussion
of some of these temporary migrant worker schemes follows.
PROVINCIAL NOMINEE PROGRAMS
Each of the Canadian provinces have their own individual provincial immigration programs
(known as Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)). These act to promote immigration policies
that cater to meet a province’s specific needs. This provides the provincial authorities with
more influence and control in the identification and selection of particular groups of economic
immigrants intending to settle in their respective provinces.
It is estimated the in 2010, that a total of roughly 90,000 economic immigrants will be
nominated or selected by authorities in the Canadian provinces. Quebec is the only province
which has the right to specifically select and nominate the immigrants who will be permitted
to seek employment opportunities and settle there. Quebec is also forecast to make
approximately 45,000 selections in terms of its foreign worker intake in 2010. This represents
an increase from the 31,000 temporary foreign workers recorded for the province in
December 2009. Comparatively Ontario was reported to have 95 000 short term migrant
workers and British Columbia had 69,000 in December 2009. Alberta also experienced a
significant increase in the number of migrants on temporary work visas, with the number of
these foreign workers rising from 16,000 in 2005 to almost 66,000 by December 2009.
All of the other Canadian provinces, other than Quebec have only been issued with the right
to nominate immigrants as part of their migrant intake programs. In 2010 and for the
foreseeable future, the numbers of immigrants to be granted permanent residence under a PNP
or selected by the Province of Quebec is anticipated to increase.
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Under the provincial programs, qualified employers are typically able to nominate prospective
workers for an expedited process which, upon receiving approval from the province allows
for an application for permanent residence to proceed as part of a processing stream that
entirely bypasses the otherwise rather lengthy federal immigration selection process. It is
possible for qualified employer sponsored applicants to initially receive short term but
renewable work permits that can be processed outside of Canada or in some instances at entry
ports. Their application for permanent admission can be processed by provincial authorities
and subsequently by federal authorities to complete security checks and medical screenings.
In the other Canadian provinces other than Quebec and Manitoba, the Provincial Nominee
Programs (PNPs) generally require an employer to sponsor the application of a foreign
migrant worker in order to enable to enter and seek employment opportunities within Canada.
In the absence of employer sponsorship which also has government approval, an application
is unlikely to be approved or maybe looked over as lower priority, in favour of applications
which have received employer sponsored approval.
To be considered as an eligible sponsoring employer, most of the PNP’s stipulate that to
qualify, employers must exhibit and prove that they have made sufficient effort to offer
competitive remuneration and working conditions to recruit local Canadian workers for the
relevant occupations. There are also variations amongst the different Canadian provinces, in
the employment terms and conditions that are required to enable the sponsorship of a migrant
worker for a specific occupation.
According to PNP guidelines, the position intended to be filled by a foreign worker must
comply with the terms of a specific pilot project designed for a specific critical skill shortage
as identified within a particular province. Alternatively the position being filled must
generally conform to a National Occupation Classification skill level of A, B or O. Pilot
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programs within the Canadian provinces are generally designed for low skilled workers and
often have limited scope. There are also often differences in the pilot projects for low skilled
occupations in the various Canadian provinces.
The duration of work permits issued for low skilled occupations is limited to a period of two
years and under the current regulation can not be extended. The duration of validity of
Canadian work permits issued to skilled workers however can be extended. There are
currently discussions being undertaken between the Canadian Federal government and the
provincial authorities to enable the duration of work permits issued for low skilled migrant
workers to also be extended.
Some Canadian industries such as the construction sector in British Columbia and Alberta’s
oil sands sector have previously been quite dependent on the Provincial Nominee Program to
fill labour shortfalls they have experienced.
The processes involved in facilitating the employment of a temporary migrant worker in
Canada generally includes the following:
1. The foreign worker must receive a job offer and enter into an approved contract of
employment with an eligible Canadian employer.
2. The foreign worker must prove that they adequately satisfy any requirements (in terms
of training/education, qualifications, prerequisite licensing, experience, etc.)
3. The foreign worker is then required to acquire labour market opinion confirmation
from Human Resources Development Canada (HRSDC) for some occupations and in
the case of some types of workers. The need to obtain a positive labour market
opinion from the HRSDC is believed to have been established in order to protect
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permanent Canadian residents from competition from foreign workers. Consequently
local Canadian employers seeking to hire overseas are generally required to guarantee
that a permanent Canadian resident worker can not be found to fill the relevant
vacancy. As part of this process the HRSDC often investigates the availability of
permanent residents to fill the position and whether the hiring of foreign workers to
fill specific vacancies would be beneficial to existing Canadian permanent residents.
The HRSDC is also responsible for ensuring that the rates of remuneration,
occupational standards and working conditions for the temporary foreign worker(s) is
comparable to what a Canadian permanent resident would be entitled to receive if they
were employed in the same role. However in some instances, the HRSDC also makes
additional stipulations. This process may therefore lead to delays in the processing of
the foreign worker’s application which may last from a couple of days to six months
depending on the employer’s location and the intended type of occupation. In cases
where the HRSDC provides a positive labour market opinion, a work permit may
subsequently be issued by the department of Citizenship and Immigration Canada
(CIC).
4. The foreign worker must obtain an appropriate work visa, which may entail further
processing delays.
LOW SKILLED PILOT PROJECT WORKER PROGRAM
The Low Skilled Pilot Project Worker Program was originally implemented to assist in
reducing labour shortages within the construction sector of the Greater Toronto Area.
However it has also been successfully utilised by various other industries across Canada
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including within Alberta’s hotel and meat processing sectors. As a temporary admission
program for migrant workers the Low Skilled Pilot Project Worker Program has a
significantly different scope to the Temporary Foreign Worker program but still follows some
similar processes.
The Low Skilled Pilot Project Worker Program is generally used by Canadian companies that
need positions to be filled by workers, who require minimal education and training and where
an ongoing shortage of workers for a designated occupation has been appropriately certified
by the local labour market. Work visas for a maximum duration of 24 months are issued on
the basis that there is an employment contract between an eligible employer and foreign
migrant worker. It is not possible to re-issue these work visas until the migrant worker has
returned to their home country for a minimum period of four months.
The process involved in hiring temporary foreign workers as part of the low skilled pilot
project is listed below:
1. An eligible Canadian employer must make a job offer and enter into contract of
employment with the foreign worker. As part of the employment contract there must
be provisions for the Canadian employer to fund the return air fare of the migrant
worker and also in some cases provide appropriate housing for the foreign worker.
2. The foreign worker is then required to acquire labour market opinion confirmation
from Human Resources Development Canada (HRSDC). This may lead to delays in
the processing of the foreign worker’s application which may last from a couple of
days to six months depending on the employer’s location and the intended type of
occupation.
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3. The foreign worker must obtain an appropriate work visa, which may entail further
processing delays deriving from the need for the migrant worker to complete a full
medical examination, etc.
AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE ON AGED CARE SERVICES
Rapid population ageing has dramatically increased the social and economic cost of aged care
in most developed countries. Demand for care workers is increasing rapidly, and many
countries are experiencing problems in recruiting enough workers to meet demand. In some
countries, the shortage of care workers has been met by a large inflow of immigrant, mostly
female, workers. However, the extent of migrant workers differs markedly between
countries1.
The UK is one of the largest importers of professional health care workers, but has not relied
on immigrants for unskilled, personal care. Germany by contrast, has not experienced a lack
of professional workers, while a parallel market for (often illegal and mainly East European
female) health care workers seems to have emerged in recent years. These workers co-reside
with the elderly person round-the-clock, and stay for a three-month period on a rotating basis.
Illegal carers are incomparably cheap and raise serious competition against home service
providers. Substantial cash benefits, little regulatory oversight, and a tradition of home care
have encouraged extensive use of foreign care workers in Austria. Many of them are illegal,
but are openly recruited by agencies for short-term rotating care work. Legal immigrant carers
are more numerous in residential care (where they account for two-thirds of staff), than in
1
Annamaria Simonazzi Care regimes and national employment models Working Paper n.113UNIVERSITA’
DEGLI STUDI DI ROMA Roma, June 2008
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home care; mostly because of language problems (while language does not seem to be a
problem for the employment of undeclared workers in households) Mediterranean countries,
too, have relied on immigrant workers to supplement family carers. Many of these workers
are undocumented immigrants, hired informally by families through informal networks or
through the church. In Spain, Italy and Greece, foreign (mostly female) workers furnish an
increasing share of home care. The underground economy covers one-third of the market in
Spain, where language is less of a problem, since workers migrate from Latin American
countries. More or less legal flows from bordering Eastern countries are supplying the market
for informal carers in Greece and Italy. Conversely, France and Sweden seem to rely least on
immigrant carers. In Sweden, substantial public spending has resulted in a largely native
workforce, which is well paid and highly trained. In spite of a very different employment
policy, native care workers are also predominant in France.
Australia and New Zealand have so far followed the Northern European model; a highly
regulated system of employment and a high reliance on a formal market for aged care. Like
the UK in particular, both countries have a high reliance on high skilled migrant care workers
while excluding the low-skilled. But with the expansion of the EU there are signs and
increasing demand for aged care workers there are signs that the northern model is under
pressure. In the UK, a 2006 survey found that 16 per cent of care assistant and home carers
were born outside of the UK. Polish immigrants represented 62 per cent of foreign born
works who registered to work in the health and medical services between 2004 and 2006.2
THE CANADIAN AGED CARE SECTOR
2
The inflow of migrants taking low-skilled jobs has been particularly large in the UK in recent times. Most of
these migrants work in agriculture, construction, hospitality and domestic service (au-pair); Fair enough? Central
and East European migrants in low-wage employment in the UK 1st May 2006 Bridget Anderson, Martin Ruhs,
Ben Rogaly, and Sarah Spencer.
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As in other developed countries the Canadian demographic trends point to a substantial
growth in the proportion of older persons, and an increasing requirement for aged care
workers. In the 2006 Census 13.7 per cent of the population was aged 65 or above. By 2036,
this share is expected to reach 25.5 per cent. These figures imply that the aged care work
force would have to increase by a factor of three over this period. While this trend has been
evident for some time, so far there has been very little concern about actual or prospective
shortages of aged care workers. At the policy level, the main concern has been the broader
issue; how to meet the demand for health care professionals - doctors, nurses and auxiliary
health professionals - as opposed to the lower skilled workers doing most of the care giving
for older persons.
The actual and prospective need for aged care workers is not currently seen as an important
issue in the development of Canada's immigration policy. One very specific reason for this is
that any problem is partly solved via the Live-in Carers Program (LCP). This unique
Canadian program has been in operation since 1992 and has been a significant source of
workers to the home based age and child care sector. By 2009 the program had grown to
almost 9,000 persons per year. Presently the stock of live-in carers in Canada is close to
20,000 persons. In addition, the current immigration settings tend to result in a steady flow of
recent immigrants into residential aged care as well. As in many other developed countries,
recent immigrants tend to be drawn to this industry. In Canada the proportion is about 20 per
cent of the workforce. Most of these persons comprise persons who entered Canada as live-in
care givers, refugees or under the skilled programs. Having served their time, many live-in
carers move from the home to the residential care sector and thus remain in the industry for
quite some time. They, like many who have entered as refugees or as skilled workers, often
have a health qualification (usually in nursing) and relevant experience in their home country,
but are restricted in their job choices because their qualifications are not recognised or lack of
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the higher level language skills required in the acute health service sector. Thus, to the
Canadian aged care sector they are a welcome, and often overqualified, source of workers.3
The continuous inflow of immigrants with relevant skills and willing to work in the aged care
sector has meant that the sector has not so far experienced any acute shortage of labour.
Hence, they have had no reason for the targeted recruitment of foreign workers. In fact, the
sector does not even actively recruitment recent immigrants, but relies on the informal
networks among recent immigrants to supply the requisite workers.
Hence it is unlikely that the Canadian aged care sector would be interested in actively recruit
Pacific Islanders as aged care workers. As demographic pressures intensify the situation may
well change, but any change is some time away.
THE MEAT PROCESSING INDUSTRY IN CANADA
The meat processing industry in Canada shares many of the features observed for Australia
and New Zealand. It is a significant industry, the broader category food processing, is the
third largest manufacturing industry and employs about 70,000 persons of which close to
60,000 are production workers.
The Canadian industry is dominated by a small numbers of corporations. The three largest are
Tyson, Maple Leaf and Cargill. The corporations have concentrated their processing in a
small number of very large plants.
Table 1: Location of the major (more than 500 employees) Animal Slaughtering and
Processing Plants (NAICS) in Canada 2008
Medium
Large
3
I. L. Bourgeault et al. The role of immigrant care workers in an ageing society: The Canadian context and
experience, University of Ottawa.
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500-1000
employees
More than
1,000
employees
Alberta
18
2
British
Columbia
14
1
Manitoba
4
2
Ontario
40
10
Quebec
45
4
Saskatchewan
6
2
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Source: Statistics Canada
More specific forecast data identifying labour shortages to occur within specific occupational
groups belonging to the Canadian meat sector is included in Appendix A (Tables 9 - 12).
Plants located in rural areas face the same labour force issues as in the US and to a lesser
extent in Australia; the difficulties of recruiting and keeping a reliable work force. This
general problem is aggravated by specific local factors. In Alberta, as in Queensland, the
availability of high paying jobs in oil and gas (Alberta) and mining (Queensland). Thus some
plants have become heavily dependent on immigrant workers. In Brooks, Alberta, much of
this immigrant labour is supplied by refugees from Africa (Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia)
turning a small western prairie town into one of the most multicultural and multiethnic town
in world. In 2006 it was estimated that more than 100 languages were spoken in Brooks.
Brandon in Manitoba is another town that share many of the features of Brooks.
Plants in or adjacent to major urban areas do not face quite the same problems in accessing
suitable workers. Cargill’s High River plant, which is only a few hours from Brooks, also has
a very large proportion of recent immigrants among its workers. However, being within
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commuting distance from Calgary, a small town does not have to face the social problems
that a highly diverse population can create. Elsewhere in Canada, in Ontario and Quebec,
where most of the meat industry is located, can source its workforce from a much larger
population base, including several major cities. Still, recruitment to the industry is an ongoing problem. As elsewhere, improving the conditions of work and the image of the industry
are two of the solutions proposed by industry organisations. However, it is generally
recognised that this is not sufficient and that immigration is part of the solution for the
foreseeable future. Presently, 18 per cent of the work force is recent arrivals and the number
of temporary workers has risen sharply in the last few years.
As elsewhere, the meat processing industry in Canada is a low paying industry, even within
the manufacturing sector as a whole. The average weekly earnings in food manufacturing for
all employees in August 2010 were in the $750-$800 range. In terms of average hourly
earnings (ordinary hours, excluding overtime) for hourly paid employees the overall Canadian
figure was $18.55. Within food manufacturing, meat processing wages tend to be at the
higher end, so the above figures should be increased by a factor of about 5 per cent to reflect
the situation in the meat processing industry. Incidentally, the Canadian wages are almost
identical to Australian wages. Obviously, the relatively low pay is not helpful in attracting a
reliable work force. In Alberta, low-skilled work in the oil sands industry pays twice as much.
Existing Recruitment Networks
The Canadian meat industry is also a significant employer of recent immigrants, both
permanent and temporary. One of the three large operators is American owned (Tyson) and
follows the employment practices it uses in its US plants. In the US this has resulted in the
recruitment of large number of Hispanic migrants moving to the rural locations in which most
of the plants are located. In Canada, the Hispanic element is much smaller and the immigrant
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workforce is drawn from the wider range of countries from which Canada’s’ low skilled
immigrants come. Another of the big three, Maple Leaf, operates a much larger number of
plants in many different locations in several provinces. Its employment practices are more
diverse and province specific. Both of these operators might well be interested in recruiting
Pacific Islanders as temporary workers for some of their plants.
Skills and Experience
Meat processing includes a wide range of jobs that requires different levels of skill. Formal
qualifications are not viewed as important and most workers develop their skills on the job.
These skills are then complemented by formal qualifications. A young person may start off
as a bone boy, going around cleaning up the floor, progressing to packing meat, then onto
knife hand, slicer and eventually boning. The career path of an older person would not be
materially different, except that they would start with more physically demanding labouring
tasks.
Thus lack of relevant skills is not an absolute barrier although employers would always prefer
more experienced workers to less experienced. For that reason it is unlikely that employers
would be interested in recruiting Pacific Islanders unless they could stay for some time, one to
two years, or being able to return for shorter stays on a regular basis.
TOURISM INDUSTRY IN CANADA
The slowing of the Canadian economy which has occurred since the 2008 economic downturn
has served to reduce the severity of labour shortages within the country throughout 2009 and
2010. However as the economy begins to recover more rapidly from the decline that was
induced by the global financial crisis, demand for tourism services is likely to grow
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considerably which will lead to more imbalances between the demand for and supply of
labour within the sector, thereby inducing further labour shortages across the industry.
The future projected labour shortages within the Canadian tourism industry are anticipated to
be induced by several factors. This includes the fact that demand for labour in the sector is
expected to grow during a time when the labour force is tipped to experience significant
changes in composition and growth. The predominant labour source which the Canadian
tourism sector has relied upon traditionally has been younger workers. In recent times
however, there has been a fall in the rate of entry into the labour force of younger workers.
This has been combined with increasing competition from other Canadian industry sectors to
attract younger workers.
The increased demand for labour that is projected to occur within the Canadian tourism
industry over the next twenty year period is anticipated to likely be induced by strong growth
in expenditure on goods and services within the industry. The food and beverages sector is
forecast to record the largest increase in potential demand for labour. According to the
forecasts, by 2025 this sector alone could potentially require over 1.2 million full time
employees. This thus represents a significant increase from the estimated 908, 000 full time
workers who were believed to be employed within the sector in 2006 (please see the Tables
included in Appendix B for more information).
Table 2: Potential Labour Demand in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs)
2015
2020
2025
269,899
282,156
297,129
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
1,011,698
1,084,661
1,160,857
TOTAL
1,281,597
1,366,817
1,457,986
Accommodation
Sector
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LABOUR
DEMAND
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010),
‘The Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve
From Labour Shortages’
As Table 2 above indicates, the largest increase in potential labour demand is forecast to
occur in the food and beverage services industry. According to the projections the sector itself
could employ more than a million full year-workers by 2015 and over 1.16 million full-year
workers by 2025. In the case of the Accommodation sector of the Canadian tourism industry
the forecast growth in labour shortages between 2015 and 2025 is more modest but still
significant with nearly 270 000 vacancies projected for 2015 and a shortfall of more than 297
000 workers anticipated for 2025.
Table 3: Potential Labour Demand in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs,
Compound Annual Growth Rate)
2011–2015
2016–2020
2021–2025
Accommodation
Sector
2.0%
0.9%
1%
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
1.9%
1.4%
1.4%
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010),
‘The Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve
From Labour Shortages’
In addition, growth in the demand for labour in both the Accommodation and the Food &
Beverage Services sectors of the Canadian tourism industry look set to remain strong up to
2015, and then appears like it will ease slightly between 2016 and 2025. These trends are
clearly visible in the data presented in Table 3.
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The figures derived from the projections for the potential growth of labour supply in the
Accommodation along with the Food and Beverage services sectors as depicted in Table 4
below, indicate that of the two sectors, the food and beverage services industry is forecast to
have the greatest anticipated increase in labour supply over the period from 2015 to 2025.
Table 4: Potential Labour Supply in Canada’s Tourism Sector (jobs)
2015
2020
2025
Accommodation
Sector
260,536
267,588
274,904
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
976,669
993,205
1,018,550
1,237,205
1,260,793
1,293,454
TOTAL LABOUR
SUPPLY
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010), ‘The
Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve From Labour
Shortages’
Table 5: Potential Labour Supply in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs,
Compound Annual Growth Rate)
2011–2015
2016–2020
2021–2025
Accommodation
Sector
1%
0.5%
0.5%
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
0.9%
0.3%
0.5%
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010), ‘The
Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve from Labour
Shortages’
Potential Labour Shortages in the Tourism Sector
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The tourism sector, like many other industries within the Canadian economy is experiencing a
trend towards tighter labour markets. The forecasts indicate that the potential labour shortage
in the Canadian Accommodation as well as the Food and Beverage sectors is likely to grow to
become even greater over the next fifteen year period. The figures also signal that the food
and beverage services industry in particular, has the greatest potential to be very vulnerable to
labour shortages.
Table 6: Potential Labour Shortages in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs)
2015
2020
2025
9,353
14,568
22,225
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
35,029
91,456
142,307
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGES
44,382
106,024
164,532
Accommodation
Sector
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010),
‘The Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve
From Labour Shortages’
The results of the forecasting as revealed in Table 6, therefore indicate that there will be a
considerable increase in the magnitude of labour shortages that are likely to occur within the
Food and beverage services sector along with the Accommodation sector in the time span
between 2010 and 2025. As a proportion of labour demand, the extent of the labour shortage
is anticipated to be most severe within the food and beverage industry, which according to the
projected figures could suffer a shortfall of around 142,000 workers by the year 2025.
In the years leading up to the recession of 2008-09, like many other Canadian industries, the
tourism sector experienced tight labour markets. Relatively weaker economic conditions since
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the 2008-09 down turn have therefore served to provide some temporary easing in labour
market conditions within the tourism industry. However the results of the projections indicate
that labour shortages will increasingly become more significant over the course of the next 15
year period.
There appears to be some consistency across the various regional areas of Canada with regard
to the occupations within the tourism industry that are anticipated to experience labour
shortages. More specifically potential labour shortages are forecast to be more acute for front
line, customer service jobs and more physically demanding occupations such as for example
hotel room attendants. In addition the recruitment of suitable workers for these occupations
generally requires longer lead times, making the recruiting process more difficult. It also
increases the likelihood that less suitable employees with for example inappropriate skills or a
lack of sufficient training may be selected to fill these vacancies. It has consequently been
reported that as a result of these factors, some vacancies for these positions remain unfilled,
particularly in some of the Western Canadian provinces.
As indicated in Table 7 below, the Food and Beverage as well as the Accommodation sectors
of the Canadian tourism industry contain the top five occupations that are most likely to face
labour shortages over the next 20 year period. The data presented indicates that the most
evident shortage of workers is forecast to occur amongst kitchen helpers and food-counter
attendants with a shortage of over 13 000 workers forecast for 2015, with this figure (almost
tripling and) growing to above 33 000 in 2020 and almost 50 000 by 2025. Significant labour
shortages are also anticipated to occur amongst food and beverage servers over the next 5-15
year period with a shortfall of over 42,000 workers in this role expected by 2025.
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Table 7: Potential Labour Shortages in Specific Occupations within the Tourism Industry
(Jobs)
Food-counter
attendants and
kitchen helpers*
Food and
beverage
servers*
Bartenders*
TOTAL
LABOUR
SHORTAGE
2015
2020
2025
13,120
33,478
49,564
11,928
27,782
42,655
2,478
27,526
5,606
66,866
8,784
101,003
*Note: The figures for these occupations include the combined labour shortages from the food
and beverage and accommodation sectors, where applicable.
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010), ‘The
Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve From
Labour Shortages’
In a survey of tourism industry stakeholders conducted by the Canadian Tourism Human
Resource Council, 75% of businesses in the Food and Beverages Sector reported that they
anticipated labour related issues to be significant a company constraint over the next three to
five year period. Interestingly enough, 63% of businesses surveyed in the study from the
Canadian Accommodation sector believed they would experience similar labour impediments
over the same time span.
Substantial labour shortages within the Canadian tourism sector are therefore expected to
occur due to an anticipated increase in demand for tourism goods and services, combined with
a forecast decline in growth of the Canadian labour force. It thus estimated that by 2025 the
Canadian tourism industry may experience a labour shortage to the magnitude of nearly
165,000 workers within its Accommodation and Food and Beverage sub-sectors. In addition,
the impending retirement of a lot of workers belonging to the baby boomer generation, the
rates of which are to due escalate towards the middle of this decade is likely to further
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exacerbate the extent of labour shortfalls. Further data relating to projected estimates of the
extent of labour shortages forecast to occur within specific Tourism sub-sectors in some of
Canada’s Provinces and Territorial Regions is included in Appendix B (Tables 17-26).
MINING INDUSTRY IN CANADA
Based on population projection data from Statistics Canada, over the next decade the number
of people in Canada who will be at an age where they can leave the labour force will
significantly exceed the number who will enter it. The number of older workers leaving the
Canadian workforce is also expected to accelerate from 2011, as the first waves of workers
from the Baby Boom generation start to reach retirement age and consequently increasingly
begin to exit the Canadian workforce.
Strong economic growth was experienced in the Canadian mining sector for the majority of
the ten year period leading up to sharp contraction that occurred from September 2008 due to
the impact of the Global Financial Crisis. However vouyed by continued strong demand for
resources from developing countries such as China, India, Brazil and Russia and also due to
the impact of non-metal commodities, considerable economic recovery within the Canadian
mining industry is already occurring.
Human resources challenges facing Canada’s mining industry are likely to significantly
adversely affect the potential economic growth of the sector. Although the Canadian mining
sector has been successful in recent years in increasing the workforce participation rates of
women, older workers, women and immigrants within the mining workforce, it is anticipated
that it will become increasingly difficult to sufficiently meet the demand for workers within
the industry in coming years. Some of the contributing factors which are believed to be likely
to lead to the expected future labour shortages within the Canadian mining industry include
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the aging workforce and the fact that there is likely to be a lower number of workers available
in the labour force. Therefore although the sector has been relatively effective in elevating
participation rates amongst previously under-represented groups, it is becoming increasingly
evident that the labour shortfalls employers within the sector face will intensify as more older
workers retire from the workforce.
The figures outlined in the Table below indicating the future hiring needs for the Canadian
Mining sector, reveal that there will be continuous future growth in demand for workers
within specific semi and unskilled occupational groups. The number of workers required for
each of the occupational groups listed in the Table is forecast to more than triple in the eight
year period between 2012 and 2020. The fastest rate of growth in terms of the number of
workers required for each of the occupational groups, also appears to be greatest in the five
years between 2015 and 2020.
Table 8: Cumulative Hiring Requirements for the Canadian Mining Industry – By Broad
Occupational Categories and Relevant Mining Occupations
Occupation
2012
2015
2020
Construction trades
helpers and labourers
304
553
1029
Other trades helpers
and labourers
51
89
158
Mine labourers
305
538
1014
Labourers in mineral
and metal processing
544
1027
2260
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Total
1160
ISBN : 9780974211428
2257
4461
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2010) ‘Canadian Mining
Industry Employment and Hiring Forecasts 2010- A Mining Industry Workforce Information
Report’
Thus the Canadian mining industry’s human resources challenges represent potential
impediments to the sector’s future growth and competitiveness. This is confirmed by the fact
that the Mining Association of Canada publically identified human resource challenges as one
of the top six main issues that the industry has to contend with. Faced with an aging
workforce and looming labour shortages, employers within the Canadian mining sector must
act proactively in order to best access and maximise all available sources of labour to stand
the best chance of effectively addressing these human resource challenges and meet the
industry’s future hiring needs.
Some data relating to the future anticipated Hiring Requirements and additional number of
workers required for particular occupational groups in specific Canadian Provinces is also
listed in the Tables 27-34 in Appendix C.
Long term workforce planning within the Canadian mining industry is more difficult than is
the case for other sectors due to the more volatile nature of the mining industry. The highly
volatile nature of employment in the mining sector is directly linked to commodity prices and
is inversely related to productivity improvements. As a result, the low levels of growth in the
Canadian labour force combined with rapidly aging workforce mean that the Canadian mining
industry is likely to experience significant labour shortfalls in the coming years and will face
considerable challenges in trying to find appropriate workers to fill emerging vacancies.
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Immigrant workers consequently represent an important source of labour for many Canadian
industries, particularly with regard to meeting their future workforce requirements. In this
respect, immigrant workers are expected to account for a larger proportion of labour force
growth in Canada over the next five to ten year period as demonstrated in data derived from
relevant population projections.
POTENTIAL BARRIER: CANADIAN IMMIGRATION POLICY AND
FOREIGN CREDENTIAL RECOGNITION
Labour shortages experienced within specific Canadian industry sectors may be exacerbated
by the nature of the country’s immigration policies. As discussed earlier, the immigration of
foreign workers into Canada largely depends on a human capital focused, points system
which places a large emphasis on the recognition of formal educational qualifications
(MITAC 2005). As a result the immigration criteria and related processes used by Canada’s
Citizenship and Immigration department may impede the capacity of Canadian employers to
effectively recruit foreign workers and may also limit the employment opportunities available
to overseas workers whose skills may be demanded by domestic employers.
Currently, Canada’s immigration selection criteria which was introduced by the Federal
Government in 2003 requires that foreign applicants acquire a score exceeding 67 points in
order to be eligible to enter Canada and seek employment within the country (MITAC 2005).
Prior to these amendments in Canada’s immigration legislation being made, foreign
applicants were required to obtain a score of 75 or more to be considered for employment
within the country. Despite the slight reduction in the number of points required by foreign
applicants, employers within many industry sectors (including manufacturing and mining)
expressed concerns of potential problems that some foreign workers with specific skills could
experience in relation to acquiring the minimum score required, especially given the relatively
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low weighting to non-university educational qualifications (MITAC 2005). The evident
consequences of this, is that the supply of skilled foreign workers into specific occupational
groups such as in trades and semi-skilled professions could be further limited.
In 2005, the Canadian government also introduced measures to reduce the number of points
awarded for different qualifications at different educational levels. Following these changes,
college diplomas and trade certificate qualification which took the same time to complete as
university degrees were subsequently assigned less points (MITAC 2005). At the time, this
represented an important change to foreign migration policy since many domestic employers
in various industry sectors were experiencing significant skills shortages amongst trade
professionals (MITAC 2005). These changes to Canadian immigration policy therefore may
have further contributed to limiting the capacity of domestic employers to effectively attract
and recruit foreign workers.
The recognition of foreign qualification and educational credentials within an applicable
immigration policy framework is often a key factor in determining the ability of foreign
workers to immigrate and be employed within another country. Consequently the failure to
have appropriate systems in place which adequately recognise the qualification and
educational credentials of applicants generally leads to the undervaluing and underutilization
of the skills of immigrant workers. Canada’s immigration selection process does not
necessitate that the qualification and educational credentials of foreign applicants be
evaluated prior to their entry into the country (MITAC 2005). However the ability of foreign
workers to effectively find employment within Canada may be subsequently impeded by the
fact that their foreign qualifications and educational credentials are not appropriately
recognised upon their entry into the labour force.
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As a result, skill shortages have previously been experienced within specific Canadian
industry sectors such as mining, while at the same time there has been a significant “skill
wastage” amongst the immigrant population (MITAC 2005). The degree of skill utilization
amongst immigrants within the context of Canada’s Immigration Policy Framework, therefore
became a prominent issue of concern. Two factors which appeared to contribute further to the
incidence of skill wastage amongst foreign workers in Canada included:
-The largely ‘protectionist’ stance of certain government, labour and professional
organisations to the recognition and certification of some foreign qualifications and
educational credentials
-Inaccurate and incorrect perceptions as to the validity and value of qualifications and
educational credentials acquired in other countries.
For example in a survey of employers in the Canadian minerals and metals industry, many of
the key informants expressed that that recognition of foreign credentials of overseas workers
that they intend to recruit is often problematic and is a key human resource challenge that they
face (MITAC 2005). Take for instance that in one particular case, a mining professional with
extensive experience spanning over two decades still had to wait several years before his
credentials were appropriately recoginised at his particular level. Appropriate recognition of
foreign applicants’ language skills was also nominated by many Canadian employers as
another area of concern (MITAC 2005). This exemplifies how many foreign skilled workers
may be prevented from entering Canada under the skilled worker migration category due to
their educational and training not being appropriately recognised. It also reiterates how even
after gaining entry into Canada, some skilled workers from overseas are hampered from
seeking out and fulfilling employment opportunities for the same reasons.
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In response to some of the skill shortages that were being experienced within certain
Canadian industries and in order to assist in reducing some of the challenges faced by foreign
workers who were attempting to have their qualifications and educational credential
appropriately recognised, the national Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
(HRSDC) developed a Foreign Credential Recognition (FCR) program. The priority of FCR
was initially to help in minimising skill shortages within regulated professions in sectors that
were experiencing significant labour shortages such as medicine, engineering and nursing.
However the HRSDC has also been involved with working with employer organisations
through sector councils and industry groups, in the case of non-regulated occupations
(MITAC 2005).
There are several organisations that provide credential assessment services across Canada and
in the different provinces within the country. Information regarding the processes involved in
credential assessment within Canada can be acquired from the Canadian Information Centre
for International Credentials (MITAC 2005). The process involved in the assessment of
foreign credentials generally involves a comparison of diplomas, degrees and other
educational qualifications to Canadian standards. This assessment however does not ensure
that the respective foreign credentials will be appropriately recognised and valued by the
relevant regulatory bodies or employer organisations. It is also possible to organise for an
assessment of a foreign worker’s education credentials while they are still outside of Canada.
However some employer and regulatory organisations do request that additional assessments
of foreign applicants’ training and qualifications be completed once they are in Canada
(MITAC 2005).
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Appendix A
Based on data generated from the Canadian Government’s Human Resources and Skills
Development Department’s (HRSDC,) Canadian Occupational Projection System (COPS) it
appears that there is likely significant labour shortages within the Canadian meat industry.
The Tables featured below outline some interesting labour market trends that are forecast to
occur within specific occupational groups belonging to the Canadian meat sector, based on
figured derived from the COPS projection data.
Table 9: Employment Level for Specific Occupational Groups in the Canadian Meat
Industry (Workers)
2013
Industrial Butchers,
Meat Cutters,
Poultry Preparers &
Related Workers
Butchers and Meat
Cutters (Retail &
Wholesale)
TOTAL
EMPLOYMENT
LEVEL
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
74,817
74,755
75,114
75,189
75,321
68,246
68,347
68,449
68,743
68,934
69,291
143,095
143,164
143,204
143,857
144,123
144,612
74,849
Source: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada - Reference Scenario 2009; and; adapted
from Statistics Canada, special tabulation, unpublished data, Labour Force Survey, 2009.
Table 10: Other Replacement Demand (Deaths and Emigrants)
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Industrial
Butchers, Meat
Cutters, Poultry
Preparers &
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286
286
288
288
291
2018
291
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Related Workers
Butchers and Meat
Cutters (Retail &
Wholesale)
TOTAL
REPLACEMENT
DEMAND
239
525
237
523
238
526
237
525
238
529
237
528
Source: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada - Reference Scenario 2009; and; adapted
from Statistics Canada, special tabulation, unpublished data, Labour Force Survey, 2009.
Table 11: Number of Retirements (Workers)
2013
2014
2015
Industrial
Butchers, Meat
Cutters, Poultry
Preparers &
Related Workers
Butchers and Meat
Cutters (Retail &
Wholesale)
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
RETIREMENTS
1,632
677
2,309
2016
2017
2018
1,694
1,731
1,804
1,855
1,918
704
772
805
870
910
2,503
2,609
2,398
2,725
2,828
Source: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada - Reference Scenario 2009; and; adapted
from Statistics Canada, special tabulation, unpublished data, Labour Force Survey, 2009.
Table 12: Number of Job Openings
2013
2014
Industrial
Butchers, Meat
Cutters, Poultry
Preparers &
Related Workers
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2,676
1,948
2015
2016
2017
2018
1,956
2,451
2,221
2,341
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Butchers and
Meat Cutters
(Retail &
Wholesale)
TOTAL
NUMBER OF
JOB OPENINGS
2,265
4,941
1,041
2,989
1,112
3,068
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1,336
3,787
1,299
3,520
1,504
3,845
Source: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada - Reference Scenario 2009; and; adapted
from Statistics Canada, special tabulation, unpublished data, Labour Force Survey, 2009.
Appendix B
Table 13: Potential Labour Demand in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs)
2015
2020
2025
269,899
282,156
297,129
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
1,011,698
1,084,661
1,160,857
TOTAL
LABOUR
DEMAND
1,281,597
1,366,817
1,457,986
Accommodation
Sector
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010),
‘The Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve
From Labour Shortages’
As Table 13 above indicates, the largest increase in potential labour demand is forecast to
occur in the food and beverage services industry. According to the projections the sector itself
could employ more than a million full year-workers by 2015 and over 1.16 million full-year
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workers by 2025. In the case of the Accommodation sector of the Canadian tourism industry
the forecast growth in labour shortages between 2015 and 2025 is more modest but still
significant with nearly 270 000 vacancies projected for 2015 and a shortfall of more than 297
000 workers anticipated for 2025.
Table 14: Potential Labour Demand in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs,
Compound Annual Growth Rate)
2011–2015
2016–2020
2021–2025
Accommodation
Sector
2.0%
0.9%
1%
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
1.9%
1.4%
1.4%
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010),
‘The Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve
From Labour Shortages’
In addition, growth in the demand for labour in both the Accommodation and the Food &
Beverage Services sectors of the Canadian tourism industry look set to remain strong up to
2015, and then appears like it will ease slightly between 2016 and 2025. These trends are
clearly visible in the data presented in Table 14.
The figures derived from the projections for the potential growth of labour supply in the
Accommodation along with the Food and Beverage services sectors as depicted in Table 15
below, indicate that of the two sectors, the food and beverage services industry is forecast to
have the greatest anticipated increase in labour supply over the period from 2015 to 2025.
Table 15: Potential Labour Supply in Canada’s Tourism Sector (jobs)
2015
2020
2025
Accommodation
Sector
260,536
267,588
274,904
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
976,669
993,205
1,018,550
1,237,205
1,260,793
1,293,454
TOTAL LABOUR
SUPPLY
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010), ‘The
Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve From Labour
Shortages’
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Table 16: Potential Labour Supply in Specific Sectors of Canada’s Tourism Industry (Jobs,
Compound Annual Growth Rate)
2011–2015
2016–2020
2021–2025
Accommodation
Sector
1%
0.5%
0.5%
Food & Beverage
Services Sector
0.9%
0.3%
0.5%
Source: Canadian Tourism Research Institute and the Conference Board of Canada (2010), ‘The
Future of Canada’s Tourism Sector: Economic Recession Only a Temporary Reprieve from Labour
Shortages’
The Tables below outline data relating to projected estimates of the extent of labour shortages
forecast to occur within specific Tourism sub-sectors in some of Canada’s Provinces and
Territorial Regions. In analysing the figures reported in these tables, it becomes evident that
the magnitude of the labour shortfalls in tourism labour are forecast to be greatest in the
Canadian Provinces which have relatively larger populations. These include the Provinces of
Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta.
Table 17: Potential Labour Shortage in Ontario’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
2015
468
2020
594
2025
1,517
20,856
45,468
71,476
21,324
46,062
72, 993
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Ontario 2010
Table 18: Potential Labour Shortage in Quebec’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
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2015
2,936
2020
4,855
2025
6,642
8,531
22,438
30,633
11,467
27,293
37,275
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Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Quebec 2010
Table 19: Potential Labour Shortage in British Columbia’s Tourism Industry (by
Sector)
2015
2020
2025
1,759
3,067
5,166
Accommodation
5,683
14,149
22,865
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
7,622
17,216
28,031
SHORTAGE
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- British Columbia 2010
Table 20: Potential Labour Shortage in Alberta’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
2015
916
4,411
2020
1,435
8,586
2025
2,641
13,070
5,327
10,021
15,711
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary reprieve from
labour shortages- Alberta 2010
Table 21: Potential Labour Shortage in New Brunswick’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
2015
372
2020
575
2025
780
1,651
3,021
4,072
2,023
3,596
4,852
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- New Brunswick 2010
Table 22: Potential Labour Shortage in Nova Scotia’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
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Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
ISBN : 9780974211428
2015
301
2020
560
2025
878
998
2,540
3,711
1,299
3,100
4,589
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Nova Scotia 2010
Table 23: Potential Labour Shortage in Saskatchewan’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
2015
2020
2025
314
533
852
Accommodation
1,477
2,842
3,651
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
1,791
3,375
4,503
SHORTAGE
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Saskatchewan 2010
Table 24: Potential Labour Shortage in Manitoba’s Tourism Industry (by Sector)
2015
2020
2025
178
303
523
Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
721
2,020
3,013
899
2,323
3,536
Source- The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Manitoba 2010
Table 25: Potential Labour Shortage in Newfoundland and Labrador’s Tourism
Industry (by Sector)
Accommodation
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
SHORTAGE
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2015
855
2020
1,364
2025
1,788
484
495
499
1,859
2,287
1,339
37
2014 Cambridge Conference Business & Economics
ISBN : 9780974211428
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Newfoundland and Labrador 2010
Table 26: Potential Labour Shortage in Prince Edward Island’s Tourism Industry (by
Sector)
2015
2020
2025
119
193
260
Accommodation
110
446
691
Food and beverage
services
TOTAL LABOUR
229
639
951
SHORTAGE
Source: The Future of Canada's Tourism Sector: Economic recovery only a temporary
reprieve from labour shortages- Prince Edward Island 2010
Appendix C
Table 27: Cumulative Hiring Requirements for Mining Sector in the Quebec (by
Occupation)
Occupation
2015
2020
Labourers in mineral
and metal processing
313
840
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2010) ‘Canadian Mining
Industry Employment and Hiring Forecasts 2010- A Mining Industry Workforce Information
Report’
Table 28: Cumulative Hiring Requirements for Mining Sector in the Ontario (by
Occupation)
Occupation
2015
2020
Labourers in mineral
and metal processing
472
995
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2010) ‘Canadian Mining
Industry Employment and Hiring Forecasts 2010- A Mining Industry Workforce Information
Report’
July 1-2, 2014
Cambridge, UK
38
2014 Cambridge Conference Business & Economics
ISBN : 9780974211428
Table 29: Cumulative Hiring Requirements for Mining Sector in the British Columbia
(by Occupation)
Occupation
2015
2020
Construction trades
helpers and labourers
339
583
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2010) ‘Canadian Mining
Industry Employment and Hiring Forecasts 2010- A Mining Industry Workforce Information
Report’
Table 30: Cumulative Hiring Requirements for Mining Sector in the Canadian
Territories (by Occupation)
Occupation
Mine Labourers
2015
2020
73
111
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2010) ‘Canadian Mining
Industry Employment and Hiring Forecasts 2010- A Mining Industry Workforce Information
Report’
Table 31: Cumulative Hiring Requirements for Mining Sector in the Canadian Atlantic
Regions (by Occupation)
Occupation
Mine Labourers
2015
2020
40
63
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2010) ‘Canadian Mining
Industry Employment and Hiring Forecasts 2010- A Mining Industry Workforce Information
Report’
Table 32: Additional Workers Required by Job Category in Saskatchewan’s Mining
Industry
Occupation
July 1-2, 2014
Cambridge, UK
2013
2017
39
2014 Cambridge Conference Business & Economics
Mine Labourers
1044
ISBN : 9780974211428
2016
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2008a), ‘Report on the Labour
Market Projections’
Table 33: Additional Workers Required by Job Category in British Columbia’s Mining
Industry
Occupation
2012
2017
Labourers
446
972
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2008b), ‘Report on the Labour
Market Projections’
Table 34: Additional Workers Required by Job Category in Ontario’s Mining Industry
Occupation
2013
2018
Labourers
80
710
Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council [MIHR] (2009), ‘Ontario Labour Market
Demand Projections’
July 1-2, 2014
Cambridge, UK
40
2014 Cambridge Conference Business & Economics
ISBN : 9780974211428
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