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The latest employment data from Statistics Canada shows that the country added 154,000 jobs to the economy in the month of November, exceeding the predicted levels.
The new labor force data suggest that Canada is on its way to a full economic recovery. The gains pushed employment in Canada higher than pre-pandemic levels. It was combined with a drop in unemployment levels up to 6%.
The rise in employment levels may have come due to the end of government COVID-19 financial assistance measures in late October, for instance, the Canadian Recovery Benefit for individuals. Analysts believe that it may have pushed people to return to work and accept job offers.
Labor Shortage in Healthcare, Hospitality & Retail Sectors
Data shows that hiring in November was driven by the private sector both in full-time and part-time positions. Even so, Canada is still experiencing labor shortages across sectors like hospitality, retail, and health care.
RBC economist Nathan Janzen noted “exceptionally low” levels of workers in the service sectors, despite the surge in employment. She writes that employment in accommodation & food services edged up 5k from October but is still more than 200k below pre-shock levels. With the overall spending’s in Travel and hospitality is rebounding combined with a low unemployment rate, it is increasingly clear that there are not enough remaining unemployed workers out there to re-fill all of the remaining jobs any time soon.
Whether this opens up newer opportunities for Canadian immigration and jobs for foreign immigrants in the Travel and hospitality industry and in many other industries are yet to be determined.
Another economist Laim Daly noted that the job growth is still not sufficient to address the significant labor shortages affecting several industries.
However, going by the current immigration policies and the intent of Immigration Minister Sean Fraser to be “very much open to” even higher levels to accommodate more foreign migrants in Canada is reassuring in planning for Canadian immigration in 2022.
Canada is Open to Travel
Full-vaccinated travelers are allowed to enter Canada.
Currently, Canada accepts the following vaccine manufacturers: AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, Janssen (Johnson & Johnson), and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin.
Such individuals are required to submit their proof of vaccination and travel documents to government officials through the ArriveCAN application, before arriving in Canada. These documents must be in French or English, otherwise, a certified translation copy is also accepted.
In light of the new Omicron strain, Canada has imposed fresh travel restrictions from select countries. Read the full story here.
Now is indeed a good time to begin your planning for immigration to Canada. Book your free appointment with CanApprove to explore immigration options based on your work & academic profile.
