Alberta, Canada has a labor shortage. Today Alberta’s economy is on a roll, with the oil industry in full throttle. There are currently over 114,000 open positions in the skilled labor and trades. Local Canadians are unable to fill them all. There is too much work for the population in this area.
An Issue of Supply
Calgary Economic Development, a government organization that supports economic development in Canada, has been leading delegations of Alberta corporations into countries with too many workers but not enough employment.
Last year, at a single event called Working Abroad Expo, the turnout in Dublin was unbelievable. Over the three day event well over 14,000 people who were willing to move to Canada for a new career showed up. On the first day alone, the line of hopeful job applicants was lined up around the corner.
Many Canadian companies feel these workers are the perfect fit. They speak the same language and share many of the same cultural traditions. Assimilation is far easier for them than it would be for others.
A Demand for Workers
Jobless rates in Alberta are very low at a 4.3 percent. In the United Kingdom the jobless rates are higher, at a steady 7.6 percent. In the Republic of Ireland they are even higher. Jobless rates are at a crushing 13.3 percent. There is just no local work in the British Isles, no matter how hard a seeker looks. But in the booming oil fields, there is more work than workers.
Legal Challenges
Several Canadian labor organizations have questioned the practice of searching overseas for employees. As a result, the process has been slowed down to give native Canadians precedence. Even so, there are just not enough Canadian workers to fill all of the positions.
