December 8, 2022 – CBC PEI: With job vacancy rates on PEI climbing, employers are welcoming the news that immigrants are becoming a bigger factor in the province’s workforce.
Census figures released last week show the proportion of immigrants and non-permanent residents in the Island workforce almost doubled between 2016 and 2021, rising from 6.9 to 13.3 per cent. Despite that growing contribution, the job vacancy rate is still rising. At 6.4 per cent it is tied with Quebec for the second highest in the country.
That vacancy rate is even higher in the retail sector, said Jim Cormier, Atlantic director for the Retail Council of Canada.
“Labour issues within the retail sector have been a challenge for a number of years,” said Cormier.
“It’s ultimately important for the retail sector to be looking at ways to attract Islanders to work in the Island retail sector, be they people that have just arrived in the province or people that have been there for years.”
Todd MacEwen, at Immigrant & Refugee Services Association PEI, said there have been changes in the programs that are bringing immigrants into Atlantic Canada.
Read the full CBC PEI story by Kevin Yarr here