Canadian unemployment is rising, but so is a worker shortage. How both can be true

Recent grads can’t get jobs. People can’t afford to retire. Unemployment is up (again) and the latest jobless figures are bleak.

But companies are starving for highly skilled workers.

And the discrepancy has been getting worse.

“People’s skills don’t match the skills required in the workplace,” says Morley Gunderson, CIBC Chair in Youth Employment at U of T.

The gap began with Canada’s shift to a knowledge-based economy, says Linda Duxbury, a professor at Carleton University studying the changing workforce.

Low-skilled but high-paying jobs have moved offshore, leaving either low-paying jobs, or professional jobs that require specific technical skills with too few people to fill them.

The heath care sector is one of the most vulnerable, says Duxbury. The growing industry stands to lose a large portion of its workforce as the baby boomer generation retires. The same concerns hold for industries from finance to construction to computers, according to a forecast from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada.

Ontario Ministry of Finance data projects a shortfall of workers ranging from 200,000 to 1.8 million by 2031, says a 2010 study titled “Jobs Without People and People Without Jobs,” by former Seneca College president Dr. Rick Miner.

Duxbury calls it the “perfect storm.”

Without skilled workers, Canada can’t be competitive globally and can’t drive growth. Encouraging highly skilled workers to immigrate isn’t enough, and Canada’s population growth is too low to replace the jobs that are being vacated by baby boomers – even as retirements are delayed.

“It’s the largest threat to our economy,” says James Knight, president and CEO of the Association of Canadian Community Colleges. He says forecasts show that in 10 years there will be 1.5 million jobs that can’t be filled.

He and 60 other college presidents are meeting with various federal government departments this week to discuss the advanced skills shortage.

His primary solution is getting more people to attend college and university.

“About 7 out of 10 jobs require post-secondary education,” he said. The focus needs to be on getting marginalized populations like people with disabilities, Aboriginal populations and disenfranchised young men into post-secondary education.

He also hopes to open more spaces in high-demand programs, and encourage people to return to college to get skilled certifications.

But the post-secondary degrees or diplomas also need to provide the right skills and it’s important to choose the right field.

“Be wary if you get an education where there isn’t market demand,” says Gunderson.

Employers also need to step up to the plate, says Duxbury, with apprenticeships, internships and re-training.

Workplaces have moved away from the “lifetime job” model, and so are less willing to invest time and money into training young people who will leave after a few months, she said.

At same time, “Millennials”, the latest generation entering the workforce, also need to tone down their “I don’t have to put up with this crap” attitude – the polar opposite of the “workaholic” attitude of their parents, says Duxbury. Both employers and employees need to look at ways of fostering loyalty in their relationship, she said.

Employers have also changed their hiring requirements, says Gunderson. It’s not enough just to have a technical skill set anymore.

“[Companies] want their employees to have people skills, to be articulate, literate, to work with teams,” he said.

Businesses are beginning to focus again on “growing their own talent,” said Jeff Aplin, president of nation-wide recruitment company David Aplin Group. They are actively recruiting smart, talented grads off campuses then training them for job specific skills.

Aplin also notes that the demand for skilled jobs varies by region. Many are in Alberta and Saskatchewan, where there is strong growth in the natural resources industries but smaller populations. Newfoundland is also in demand of skilled workers, he said.