As readers can deduce, the types of occupations and the employers hiring largely reflect where the province is in terms of the public health measures in place. The month of February 2022 saw two phases of loosening public health measures in Ontario. The first phase, from February 1 through February 16, saw capacity limits for retail, restaurants, and other establishments increased to 50 percent. The second phase, from February 17 to February 28, saw capacity limits in establishments requiring proof of vaccination (restaurants, cinemas, and gyms, for instance) lifted. Further public health measures have been lifted as of March 1, including the elimination of mandatory vaccination passports.
This month, we’re looking at where hiring increased and what we can expect in the coming months as employers look ahead not only to lifted restrictions, but also to warmer weather and an eager, yet likely cautious, customer base.
The following data, courtesy of Workforce WindsorEssex’s unique data source which covers job postings from across the province (excluding the City of Toronto and the far north-eastern region), demonstrates trends in certain occupations and sectors that coincide with relaxed public health measures.1https://www.workforcewindsoressex.com/
The ten most in-demand occupations in February 2022 compared to the previous month were as follows:
The top-ten in-demand occupations constitute over one-quarter of all job postings (50,264 job postings or 28.6 percent) in the regions. The number of active job postings increased by 13,976 in February 2022 relative to January 2022 for a total of 175,507, compared to 161,531 active job postings in January. This is an increase of 8.6 percent across the regions for February. This increase in overall active job postings points to employers having the capacity to hire additional workers to accommodate increasing demand as the province further opens.
Looking at Statistics Canada’s employment by industry for the whole of Ontario, Ontario did see some job losses over the previous month, with 7,541,300 total employed, all industries, in February.2https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1410038801&pickMembers%5B0%5D=1.37&cubeTimeFrame.startMonth=02&cubeTimeFrame.startYear=2019&cubeTimeFrame.endMonth=02&cubeTimeFrame.endYear=2022&referencePeriods=20190201%2C20220201 This is down 0.1 percent from the previous month’s 7,551,000, but also up 6.1 percent from 7,107,300 in February 2021, up 1.7 percent from 7,414,900 in February 2020, and up 4.7 percent from 7,205,000 in February 2019.
From the above table, we see that active job postings for both Cooks and Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers, and Related Support Occupations increased in February (up 28.5 percent and 15 percent, respectively, in February relative to January). This would reflect the loosening of public health measures put into place by the province in December and January that impacted the Accommodation and Food Services sector. Clearly, many businesses in this sector are looking ahead and preparing for demand in March and beyond.
According to Statistics Canada, employment in Accommodation and Food Services decreased 0.6 percent in the whole of Ontario in February as compared to January with 359,700 employed in the sector in February and 361,700 in January, although the easing of public health measures is good news for this sector’s rebound. This is up 15.8 percent from 310,600 in February 2021, but still down 18.5 percent from 441,200 in February 2020, and down 17.9 percent from 438,100 in February 2019.3https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1410038801&pickMembers%5B0%5D=1.37&cubeTimeFrame.startMonth=02&cubeTimeFrame.startYear=2019&cubeTimeFrame.endMonth=02&cubeTimeFrame.endYear=2022&referencePeriods=20190201%2C20220201
While hiring for Retail and Wholesale Trade Managers was little changed in February from the previous month, we are seeing a jump in active job postings for Retail Salespersons (up 8 percent in February relative to January), indicating it is not just the Accommodation and Food Services sector eager to take advantage of eased public health measures.
Employment for the Wholesale and Retail Trade sector was down slightly in the whole of Ontario in February, according to Statistics Canada, but capacity limits were in place during the month of February. Employment in Wholesale and Retail Trade is up past its pre-pandemic levels but did decrease 0.5 percent in February as compared to January with 1,143,500 employed in the sector in February and 1,149,400 in January. This is up 12.3 percent from 1,018,200 in February 2021, up 4.7 percent from 1,092,500 in February 2020, and up 7.1 percent from 1,068,200 in February 2019.4https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1410038801&pickMembers%5B0%5D=1.37&cubeTimeFrame.startMonth=02&cubeTimeFrame.startYear=2019&cubeTimeFrame.endMonth=02&cubeTimeFrame.endYear=2022&referencePeriods=20190201%2C20220201
Interestingly, while the public health measures in place during the month of January and some of February were lifted, including the recommendation to work from home where possible, active job postings for “working remotely” appeared in 1,542 active job postings in February, for an increase of 17.1 percent relative to appearing in 1,317 active job postings in January. This number may decrease in March, however, as some employees are looking for work from home or hybrid working environments, and appealing to that may be an effective strategy for companies to attract and retain talent.
Additionally, the terms “vaccination” or “vaccines” appeared in 25,979 active job postings in February, for an increase of 14.8 percent relative to appearing in 22,633 active job postings in January. Again, this number may decrease as mandatory vaccination passports were phased out in March, but it may also indicate that companies are looking to maintain their own vaccination policies for the time being.
The top-ten companies hiring in February 2022 compared to the previous month were as follows:
While most of the top-ten companies hiring remain unchanged, we do see two new entries on the list for February: Canada Post Corporation and Recipe Unlimited Corporation. The increase in hiring for Canada Post could point to an increase both in the number of goods being shipped and in changing consumer habits with people opting to shop online.
The increase in hiring for Recipe Unlimited (a Full-Service Restaurant company that owns such brands as Swiss Chalet, Harvey’s, and The Keg Steakhouse + Bar) coincides with the increase in active job postings for Cooks and Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations.
We can also see that the increase in demand for Retail Salespersons can be attributed to companies such as The Home Depot Canada, Loblaws Companies Limited, Walmart Canada, Lowe’s Canada, Shoppers Drug Mart, and Staples Canada Inc.
March’s numbers will more fully reflect the impacts of the loosening of public health measures that were in place throughout February and their subsequent relaxation as of March 1.
For more information about Workforce WindsorEssex and their valuable LMI, please visit workforcewindsoressex.com.
