B.C.’s set to see a lot of retirement parties over the next decade, as about two thirds of the provincial workforce is set to leave their jobs by 2031. That’s according to the province’s latest Labour Market Outlook, which predicts this will lead to an influx of job opportunities to replace those retiring workers.
Across the whole economy, B.C. is going to have about a million job openings through 2031 and 77 per cent of them will require some level of post-secondary education, the province predicts.
In British Columbia, five industries will account for about half of the total job openings projected over the next 10 years: Health-care and social assistance (14 per cent),professional, scientific, and technical services (14 per cent), retail (10 per cent), construction (8 per cent) and accommodation and food services (7 per cent).
The province predicts job seekers and workers can benefit by understanding the skills and competencies employers need. (workbc.ca)
B.C.’s hard-hit accommodation sector is seeing slower optimism after it was devastated by the pandemic and travel restrictions. The province predicts it will only see a return to its pre-pandemic levels by 2027, in part because business travel is not expected to be a priority after the surge in virtual meetings and communication models over the last two years. However, the province predicts food services like restaurants and bars will need some 50,000 additional workers by 2031.