Vancouver: Driving past a port in Metro Vancouver, Victoria or Prince Rupert, it might seem as though a large number of jobs are involved in shipping goods throughout North America but a new study from the Asia Pacific Gateway Skills Table (APGST) casts a new light on the enormous jobs potential over the next ten years.
APGST has released a new study titled: Asia Pacific Gateway Labour Market Outlook 2016-2025, which projects the creation of 109,075 new jobs in the sector over the next ten years. The study takes a closer look at 52 occupations considered essential in five sectors that support international trade with Asia Pacific countries.
Of the 109,075 jobs being created, the authors conclude 18,920 will be entirely new jobs that don’t exist in British Columbia today with the remaining jobs becoming vacant through retirement and other attrition.
The number of positions increases by 6%, with a total of 18,920 new positions over the forecast period.
By sector, new positions number approximately:
- 10,965 (6.2%) in Construction
- 9,960 (7.5%) in Logistics
- 10,415 (7.4%) in Marine
- 12,980 (7.2%) in Rail
- 12,010 (7.4%) in Trucking
Tracked separately from the sectors, the report notes managerial jobs will be created in all sectors and 2,415 new managers will be needed over the next 10 years.
The study projects that employers will continue to be challenged to find new employees throughout the next decade. Current and recent construction work to upgrade roads, railways, airports and seaports has amounted to $21 billion and the sector is preparing for the ever-increasing international travel of goods and individuals into and out of Asia.
While the complete study details all five sectors and 52 occupations, the following is a list of selected occupations which are expected to experience a large concentration of new jobs:
- Transport Truck Drivers, 13,431 jobs
- Information Systems Analysts and Consultants, 7,635 jobs
- Construction Managers, 5,442 jobs
- Heavy Equipment Operators (except Crane), 4,348 jobs
- Automotive Service Technicians, Truck and Bus Mechanics and Mechanical Repairers, 4,054 jobs
- Facility Operation and Maintenance Managers, 3,278 jobs
- Construction Millwrights and Industrial Mechanics, 2,814 jobs
- Civil Engineers, 2,662 jobs
- Supervisors, Supply Chain, Tracking and Scheduling Co-ordination Occupations, 1,715 jobs
- Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 1,591 jobs
- Mechanical Engineers, 1,444 jobs
- Dispatchers, 1,228 jobs
The report does an excellent job of highlighting the enormous challenge the sector faces in the next ten years to secure the workers they will need. Across all sectors in British Columbia, nearly a million new workers will be needed over the next 10 years and these five sectors alone will represent 11 per cent of that total.
The research suggests 10 per cent of the new workers will be recruited from other provinces with another 17% of workers being recruited internationally. This means the remaining 83 per cent of workers will need to be found in young British Columbians choosing these occupations or workers in other sectors choosing to switch careers.
This study presents an enlightening perspective on British Columbia’s current economic success and the challenge all industries in the province will have in recruiting a new generation of workers.
While the risks of automation and globalization will clearly impact many jobs in British Columbia, in this sector automation is creating new well paying jobs and our role as Canada’s gateway to the Asia Pacific has positioned us well to benefit from thousands of new jobs.
For more information on this research or the APGST, please visit: www.lmionline.ca
