A “mild” hiring climate is anticipated for Edmonton for the second quarter of this year, with a “cautiously optimistic” outlook for Calgary, according to the Employment Outlook Survey released on Tuesday by ManpowerGroup.
“Survey data reveals that 16 per cent of employers (in Edmonton) plan to hire for the upcoming quarter, while four per cent anticipate cutbacks,” said Randy Upright, CEO of Manpower’s Alberta region. “Another 79 per cent of employers plan to maintain their current staffing levels in the upcoming quarter. The remaining one per cent are unsure of their hiring intentions.
“With seasonal variations removed from the data, Edmonton’s second quarter net employment outlook of 10 per cent is a one percentage point decrease when compared to the previous quarterly outlook. It is also a five percentage point decrease from the outlook reported during the same time last year, indicating a modest hiring pace for the upcoming months.”
Upright said survey data reveals that 10 per cent of employers in Calgary plan to hire for the upcoming quarter, while four per cent anticipate cutbacks.
“Another 84 per cent of employers plan to maintain their current staffing levels in the upcoming quarter. The remaining two per cent are unsure of their hiring intentions. With seasonal variations removed from the data, Calgary’s second quarter net employment outlook of eight per cent is a three percentage point increase when compared to the previous quarterly outlook,” he said. “It is also a one percentage point increase from the outlook reported during the same time last year, indicating a conservative hiring pace for the upcoming months.”
At the national level, Darlene Minatel, country manager for ManpowerGroup Canada, said Canadian job growth has picked up in the first quarter of 2019, and this appears to be reflected in the forecast for the second quarter of 2019.
“With the private sector ramping up hiring efforts, 66,800 new jobs were created January, and this trend can be expected to continue in the second quarter of the year,” she said. “Ontario and Quebec continue to experience a hiring surge, but many employers are still struggling to find the right candidates for open jobs.”
Mario Toneguzzi is a Troy Media business reporter based in Calgary. He writes for Calgary’s Business.
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