Record job vacancies coincided with growth in overall employment and falling unemployment.
construction, retail trade, and manufacturing.
Health care and social assistance are facing significant labour force pressure. There were 118,200 vacancies in Q3 2021, and payroll employment reached a pre-COVID level in December 2020 which indicates the sector is facing challenges with respect to unmet labor demand. Even prior to the pandemic, there was a growing need for workers in this sector due to Canada’s aging population. Nurse aides, orderlies, and patient service associates (24,100) and registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses (22,800) were among the occupations with the most vacancies in Q3 2021.
Accommodation and food services accounted for almost 25 percent of the increase in all job vacancies over the past two years. Statistics Canada explains the higher level of job vacancies was likely due to staffing challenges related to businesses reopening in the sector over the summer and the sector usually experiencing stronger labor demand over the summer.
One way employers can address job vacancies is by offering higher wages. Statistics Canada explains that the record-high job vacancies has increased attention on the degree to which labor shortages may contribute to upward pressure on wages. Between Q3 2019 and Q3 2021, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which is used to measure inflation in Canada, increased by 4.3 percent. Wage growth exceeded CPI growth in 155 out of 373 occupations for which wage data was available in the comparison period. The largest increases in job vacancies included construction trades helpers and laborers, cooks, retail salespersons, and nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates. The average offered wage for these occupations increased by 9.7 per cent and the average hourly wages for all employees in these occupations increased by 8.4 per cent.
