Employer One Survey shows lack of applicants barrier for businesses hiring

The results of this year’s Employer One Survey are out with a 166% increase in respondents from the 2020 report.

This is the sixth year the Centre for Workforce Development has conducted the survey in the Hastings, Prince Edward and Lennox & Addington Counties.

There were 303 companies who responded to this year’s survey compared to 114 in 2020.

The centre’s Executive Director Brad Labadie says the survey provides a good snapshot in time of where employers are.

Labadie says despite COVID, 35% per cent of employers hired over the last 12 months and 56% of employers anticipate hiring in the next 12 months.

The top reason employers are having trouble filling positions is a lack of applicants.

“They’re just not getting enough people applying and that’s been a standard over the last four or five years that we’ve conducted it here but there are some other reasons why they’re having a hard time filling these positions and some of it is lack of work experience and this year the number four reason for having a hard time filling was a lot of COVID-19 related factors.”

Labadie says another concern is the aging workforce.

Twelve per cent of the work force is under the age of 25 while 36% is over the age of 55.

When trying to attract new people to the area, Labadie says new Canadians will play a big role.

“The community has developed a regional immigration strategy that I hope to see them be able to address and implement parts of  it. But, obviously COVID-19, when that happened, it sorta put the brakes on that for the time being but there’s a strategy there for them to work on.”