WATCH ABOVE: With oil prices remaining low and our country in a recession, it’s easy to get the impression there are absolutely no jobs out there. You might be surprised to learn some jobs out there are still in high demand. There’s a catch though. As Carolyn Kury de Castillo reports, if you live in a big city, you’ll likely have to move to get one.
CALGARY — On Friday, another oil patch employer announced 500 layoffs. With oil prices remaining low and the country in a recession, it’s easy to get the impression there are absolutely no jobs out there.
Well, you might be surprised to learn some jobs out there are still in high demand. There’s a catch, though; if you live in a big city, you’ll likely have to move to get one.
The ‘Newcomers Career Fair’ in Calgary was packed Saturday, not just with people looking for jobs but with employers seeking workers.
“We have had some jobs that have been open for five months or more in these rural areas just looking for people who really want to move to these kind of places,” said Kristy Skwaruk with Bungee agribusiness and food company.
“We find some candidates that are great candidates but they just want to stay in and around the cities.”
Organizers say despite the economic down turn there are just as many businesses and government agencies looking for workers now, compared to the same event six months ago.
“February, the fair here was the biggest one we’ve had yet. Registrations that we are tracking, they are pretty much bang on with where they were in February. We have the same kind of exhibitors, the same quantity of jobs and the same type of people coming to attend,” said Sara Glynn with Newcomers Job Fair.
Agriculture companies have always had a hard time recruiting because many of the jobs are in smaller centres and don’t pay as well as the oil and gas industry. But despite the increase in resumes that agriculture companies have been getting since oil prices dropped, they are still looking for new immigrants to fill the vacancies.
“That makes it difficult where we have to start to have a discussion with them. Hey, in agriculture it’s a long-term position, it may not pay as well as oil and gas, but we will be around forever. People always have to eat,” Skwaruk said.
Companies and counties are trying to sell new Canadians on small, family oriented communities with lakes and cheap housing, and some are happy to relocate.
“Moving to the smaller communities is always a good experience when times are down and when oil prices are down in Alberta. So people must consider where the opportunities are,” said Jatinder Singh, who’s willing to move for a job.
Others, like Baljinder Batahroo, say a recent visit to small-town Saskatchewan has confirmed that’s not the place for him.
“What I found is that I was not so comfortable as I am in Calgary. I wasn’t happy, really. But as you know the situation for jobs right now in Calgary is in a worse situation, so if we had a good opportunity we could move and in better times we will return, that is for sure,” Batahroo said.
The most in-demand jobs include anything in health care or agriculture.
“A lot of them want to be, for example, in Calgary or Edmonton. They’ve heard about the opportunity for oil and gas and the pay that goes along with that and they’ve gotten used to it. So realistically, it’s trying to break that stereotype,” Skwaruk said.
“For example, positions that we had in Fort Saskatchewan, the number of resumes is going up, but the challenge is still finding people who want to be in those rural communities. So the demand is still there and I just don’t see that going away, which is why we are still looking for people outside Canada to fill those positions.”
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