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The need for skilled labour is the biggest challenge facing employers in Moncton, New Brunswick, a new survey suggests, and increasing the number of foreign workers is seen as key to solving the problem.聽

The survey by the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Moncton (CCGM) found businesses in the city of 72,000 are 鈥渋ncreasingly focused on filling labour needs,鈥� which was cited by respondents as the main challenge to business growth.

Of the 174 businesses surveyed between November 23 and December 9, 2018, 38 per cent cited 鈥渄ifficulty finding employees with the right labour skills鈥� as their top concern. Nearly half of respondents said they have a shortage of skilled workers. Another 48 per cent said it is either 鈥渄ifficult鈥� or 鈥渧ery difficult鈥� to recruit and retain employees.

More than half of employers surveyed, 55 per cent, said they鈥檝e hired a newcomer to the province in the past year.

The province鈥檚 labour shortage is attributed to New Brunswick鈥檚 ageing聽population, migration to other Canadian provinces and a low-birth rate, among other factors.

鈥淕reater Moncton鈥檚 economy has been thriving in recent years, but business people who want to grow their business are expanding their聽search outside New Brunswick and Canada to fill labour needs,鈥� said CCGM CEO John Wishart.

When asked what the provincial government鈥檚 top priority in 2019 should be, 21 per cent of respondents answered population growth and attracting more immigrants to the province. This was second only to lowering the province鈥檚 deficit and debt, which was cited by 25 per cent of the businesses surveyed.

In with Huddle Today, a New Brunswick-based website dedicated to business news, Wishart said the rise of labour and immigration issues as a top issue among local businesses is a recent development and more employers are turning to immigration programs like the to solve their labour woes.

Introduced in 2017, the Atlantic Immigration Pilot helps designated employers in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador to hire eligible foreign workers and international graduates of post-secondary institutions in those provinces for jobs they haven鈥檛 been able to fill locally.

Newcomer job fair

Despite the shortage of skilled labour, nearly 60 per cent of Moncton businesses predicted their workforces would increase over the first six months of 2019, a reflection of their generally positive views of the local economy.

In an effort to fill vacancies, the City of Moncton is hosting聽 on January 25聽for newcomers with work experience in IT, finance, customer聽service and back office support.

鈥淭he purpose of this event is to expose immigrants to the wide array of available career and educational opportunities that exist in the Greater Moncton area,鈥� an event notice posted by the City of Moncton says.

鈥淔or employers, this initiative will help fill your workforce needs with access to top-tier international talent from our region.鈥�

A recent report by the New Brunswick Multicultural Council said the province will need around 7,500 newcomers聽year a year if it is to overcome the population and labour market shortage 鈥渃risis鈥� it is now facing and keep its economy growing.

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