Which sectors have the highest rates?
Canada posted a record-high job vacancy at the start of March with employers seeking to fill more than one million positions, according to a report from Statistics Canada (StatCan).
Vacancies increased by 22.6 per cent (186,400) from February, and were up 60.5 per cent (382,000) from March 2021.
“Before increasing to over one million (1,012,900) in March 2022, job vacancies had fallen for five consecutive months from a previous high of 988,300 in September 2021,” says Ottawa.
“Labour demand varies over the course of the year influenced by seasonal patterns with increased economic activity typically driving higher demand for labour in the spring and summer and lower demand in the winter. These seasonal effects are reflected in the five months of consecutive decreases in job vacancies from October 2021 to February 2022.”
Three in four (75 per cent) employers globally are having difficulty finding the talent they need, the highest in 16 years, according to a report from ManpowerGroup.
Differences by sector, region
Among sectors, job vacancy was highest in accommodation and food services (158,000), followed by health care and social assistance (154,500) and retail trade (109,200). Manufacturing (87,500); construction (81,900); Professional, scientific and technical services (70,000); and administrative and support, waste management and remediation services (62,500) also had a huge number of vacancies.
Those with the fewest vacancies are management of companies and enterprises (3,900); mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (8,000); and real estate and rental and leasing (13,400).
Among provinces and territories, Ontario (370,200) has the biggest number of job vacancies, ahead of Quebec (259,200), British Columbia (178,300) and Alberta (95,400).
There were far fewer vacancies in Yukon (900), Northwest Territories (1,300) and Prince Edward Island (3,600).
Vacancy rates
The job vacancy rate also stood at 5.9 per cent in March 2022, matching the record set in September 2021.
Industries with vacancy rates above the national average include accommodation and food services (12.8 per cent); agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (7.7 per cent); construction (7.3 per cent); administrative and support, waste management and remediation services (7.3 per cent); arts, entertainment and recreation (6.8 per cent); health care and social assistance (6.6 per cent); and other services (7.0 per cent).
Those with the smallest such rates are educational services (1.8 per cent); management of companies and enterprises (3.0 per cent); public administration (3.3 per cent); and mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (4.0 per cent).
Among provinces and territories, vacancy rates are above the national average in B.C. (7.3 per cent) and Quebec (6.7 per cent). These are lowest in Newfoundland and Labrador (4.5 per cent), Alberta (4.7 per cent) and New Brunswick (4.8 per cent).
Meanwhile, payroll employment increased by 118,100 (0.7 per cent) in March. And average weekly earnings were $1,170 in March, up 0.9 per cent compared with February.
“On a year-over-year basis, average weekly earnings increased 4.3 per cent in March, while the Consumer Price Index increased 6.7 per cent during the same period,” according to StatCan.
A boost in pay is the best way to address staff turnover, say 42 per cent of employees in an EY study.
