ManpowerGroup survey shows fewer roles are expected to be created in the coming three months, exacerbating pain for many Canadians
In the period from February to April, 5.5 million Canadian jobs were affected by the coronavirus outbreak, including a drop in employment of 3 million.
The recovery of these roles will be a long journey with the latest figures from Statistics Canada showing that employment rose 290,000 in May, around 10% of those lost.
Compared with February, full-time employment was down 11.1% in May, while part-time work was down 27.6%.
A new survey released today (Jun 9) suggests that the road to recovery will be lengthy, with the national outlook for hiring remaining weak for the next three months.
The ManpowerGroup Canada survey shows that the negative outlook (-10%) represents a 21 percentage point drop from a year ago and a 19 point drop from the second quarter of 2020.
Just 12% of employers plan to increase their staffing levels in the third quarter with 17% expecting cutbacks and 60% expecting to maintain their current staffing levels (11% are unsure).
Seven in ten organizations surveyed said that normal business activity has been halted or suspended by the outbreak but even so, 59% still expect to return to pre-COVID-19 hiring levels within the next 12 months.
However, there are concerns that a planned rise in EI premiums could mean lower employment.
Where the jobs will be
There is likely to be stronger hiring in the manufacturing of non-durable goods (8%) and the services sector (2%) while construction shows the weakest outlook (-26%).
"Companies that are hiring generally fall into the category of being essential service or supportive of essential services during this time. The category of essential workers is expanding beyond those who got us through the crisis – grocery stores clerks and temperature checkers – to include those who will help lead us out of the crisis,” said Darlene Minatel, country manager of ManpowerGroup Canada. “Think of roles in the IT sector, including chip manufacturers and app developers, who are leading the shift to more flexible and remote work."
Regional variations
The strongest regional Outlook is reported by employers in Atlantic Canada (-1%), declining by nine percentage points in comparison with the second quarter and a 17 percentage point decrease in comparison with the same period last year.
