One of the five occupational groups that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has decided to give priority to through category-based Express Entry draws in
How many tradespeople are needed in Canada for the occupations targeted by Express Entry?
One of the five occupational groups that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has decided to give priority to through category-based Express Entry draws in 2023 is trades. The Canadian federal government launched Express Entry category-based draws earlier in 2023 as a way to use immigration to address labor market gaps in five specific occupational categories.
Health care, STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), trades, transportation, and agriculture/agri-food are among the 2023 Express Entry categories.
The IRCC introduced category-based selection draws for Express Entry earlier this year to help important employment sectors that are experiencing some of the largest labor market gaps in this country.
Why the Express Entry category targeted for trades was chosen
Trades that require a high level of skill are in high demand, rewarding, and crucial to communities across Canada, according to Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). More than 256,000 new apprentices “are needed over the next five years,” according to ESDC, to meet the demand for skilled trades jobs nationwide.
Does Canada require that many tradespeople?
By 2032, Canada’s construction sector must hire 299,200 new employees. This projection is based on the expectation that 245 100 workers, or 20% of the workforce in this field in 2022, will soon retire.
The next section explains in more detail how four distinct factors are anticipated to affect the number of new job openings within this occupational group in the upcoming years.
The “expansion demand” will account for 3,400 (17%) of the job openings.
The “retirements” will result in 11,800 (60%) new job openings.
The “other replacement demand” will account for 1,800 (9%) of the job openings.
2,600 jobs (13%) will be available because of “emigration”
What chance does this give potential immigrants to Canada?
Candidates for immigration with experience in trades occupations were among the top recipients of Invitations to Apply (ITAs) for permanent residence in Canada last year, according to the 2022 year-end Express Entry report.
The top 15 primary occupations of Canadian immigrants who received an ITA in 2022 included Cooks specifically. This carries on a pattern from 2021. People in this profession were among the top five primary occupation recipients of ITA in that year.
