More Workers Land Paying Canada Jobs As Vacancies Fall

The number of job postings in education, healthcare and social services dipped in February as Canada job vacancies dropped by four per cent to 841,300.

“In February, the number of job vacancies showed little change in the remaining 18 sectors, including in accommodation and food services where there were 116,800 job vacancies, retail trade with 90,600 vacant jobs, construction with 69,400 open jobs and manufacturing with 63,700 vacant positions,” noted Statistics Canada in its latest Payroll Employment, Earnings and hours, and Job Vacancies report.

Canada’s job vacancy rate, defined as the number of vacant positions as a proportion of total labour demand which is the sum of filled and vacant positions, nudged down 0.2 percentage points to 4.7 per cent in February.

“The number of job vacancies in healthcare and social assistance declined by 16,200 positions, a drop of 10.1 per cent, to 143,800 in February, offsetting January’s increase of 11,800 positions, up 7.9 per cent over the previous month,” noted Statistics Canada. 

“Despite this decline, the number of vacancies in this sector remained the highest across all sectors for the eighth consecutive month in February.”

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In education, the number of job vacancies fell by 3,600, a drop of 16 per cent, to 18,700 in February, following a decrease of 5,300, or 19.1 per cent in January.

“The job vacancy rate in the sector was 1.3 per cent in February, the lowest of all sectors for the tenth consecutive month,” notes Statistics Canada.

Driving down the job vacancy rate is the uptick in people landing paying work in Canada. Payroll employment in the services sector grew by 62,300  jobs in February as the number of workers with paying jobs in the goods-producing sector held steady.

“Payroll employment in educational services increased by 19,400 workers in paying jobs, up 1.4 per cent in February 2023, continuing an upward trend that began in November 2022,” notes Statistics Canada.

“Elementary and secondary schools, with an increase of 18,200 paid workers or 2.2 per cent more, accounted for over 90 percent of February’s monthly gain in educational services, while representing roughly 60 per cent of total payroll employment in the sector.”

Retail Trade And Construction Sector Was In Hiring Mode In February

Stores added 11,200 paid employees as the retail trade added a half of a per cent more workers in February on the heels of January’s increase of 27,600 paid workers.

The construction sector added 10,400 paid workers, continuing the steady climb in the size of its workforce that started back in September last year. Since then, the sector has added 35,300 paid workers.

“In February, payroll employment in professional, scientific and technical services increased by 7,100, up 0.6 per cent,” notes Statistics Canada.

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Year over year, average weekly earnings in February were up 1.8 per cent to $1,177. That month, average weekly earnings grew the most in the Northwest Territories, where they shot up by 24.4 per cent, and declined the most in Nunavut where they fell by 85.9 per cent. 

Among the provinces average weekly earnings rose the most on Prince Edward Island, spiking 15.1 per cent, and fell the most, by 45.5 per cent, in Manitoba.

Foreign nationals can gain their permanent residency in Canada during tight labour markets by immigrating through the country’s many economic immigration programs.

Under the Express Entry system, immigrants can apply for permanent residency online if they meet the eligibility criteria for one of three federal immigration programs, the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST), and Canada Experience Class Program (CEC),  or a participating provincial immigration program.

PNPs Offer Route To Economic Immigration For Skilled Workers

Candidates’ profiles then are ranked against each other according to a points-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). The highest-ranked candidates will be considered for an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence. Those receiving an ITA must quickly submit a full application and pay processing fees, within a delay of 60 days.

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Through a network of Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP), almost all of Canada’s ten provinces and three territories can also nominate skilled worker candidates for admission to Canada when they have the specific skills required by local economies. Successful candidates who receive a provincial or territorial nomination can then apply for Canadian permanent residence through federal immigration authorities.

Canadian employers can also recruit and hire foreign nationals through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and the International Mobility Program (IMP).

The Global Talent Stream (GTS), a part of the TFWP, can under normal processing situations lead to the granting of Canadian work permits and processing of visa applications within two weeks.