These are hardest jobs to fill in Canada

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If you’re on the hunt for a new job, you might be in luck, as more than half of Canadian companies are planning to add new positions in the second half of the year, according to research by Robert Half, a talent solutions and business consulting firm.

The company’s State of Canadian Hiring Survey, which interviewed 1,800 managers with hiring responsibilities, found that 52 per cent plan to add new permanent positions, 41 per cent plan to fill vacated positions and 58 per cent plan to increase the number of contract and project-based professionals.

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Half of the managers surveyed indicated that company growth was the primary factor influencing hiring decisions. Other factors included employee turnover, project-based work and a lack of requisite skills among current employees.

But despite the robust hiring plans, managers fear that finding the right talent may not be easy, with 90 per cent reporting difficulty finding skilled professionals. Another 31 per cent anticipate it taking longer to hire between now and the end of 2025, compared to the first half of 2024.

Most said a lack of applicants with the required skills was the biggest hiring challenge but others included finding candidates who align with company culture, hiring quickly enough to land the best talent  and meeting candidates’ salary expectations.

“Hiring challenges and subsequent lengthy hiring cycles can have a big impact on projects and business priorities,” Koula Vasilopoulos, senior managing director of Robert Half, Canada, said in a press release. “Employers have crucial roles that need filling and need to ensure they have strategic hiring strategies in place to attract talent and keep projects on track.”

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To help attract and hire talent, managers are getting flexible, with 59 per cent willing to bend on years of experience if the candidate has the required skills, 39 per cent offering hybrid work options and 37 per cent offering flexible schedules.

“Flexibility continues to be a major priority for professionals, and offering some autonomy over when and where team members work can give companies an edge in securing top talent,” Vasilopoulos said.

For job seekers, Canada’s top 10 hard-to-fill jobs, according to job search site Indeed, could offer a starting point:

1. E-commerce specialist
2. Pet groomer
3. Registered nurse, ICU
4. Registered nurse, medical/surgical
5. Optometrist
6. Insurance agent
7. Veterinarian
8. Registered nurse, emergency room
9. Community health worker
10. Physician

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This year’s maple syrup bounty of 239 million pounds was bolstered by an unusually early start to the season. But a record harvest just isn’t enough for the world’s top producing region. Quebec — the source of 72 per cent of the world’s maple syrup — is ramping up output to not only quench global appetites for the pancake topper, but also to replenish depleted stockpiles that are set aside to protect Canadian farmers against bad harvests in a volatile industry. — Bloomberg

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• Bank of Canada market participants survey for the second quarter
• Today’s Data: United States employment report for July, U.S. factory orders for June
• Earnings: Brookfield Renewable Corp., Chevron Corp., Telus Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp., Enbridge Inc., Imperial Oil Ltd.

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Being worth a million dollars used to be the exception, but for Canadian households it is now just average — though it isn’t quite as straightforward as it sounds. Data released by Statistics Canada in June showed that in the first quarter of 2024, average household net worth reached $1,009,483, an increase of about 2.5 per cent from a year ago and up nearly 28 per cent from the final quarter of 2019, the last full quarter before the pandemic. Read on for a break down of the current state of household wealth in Canada — and the implications for the economy going forward.

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Are you worried about having enough for retirement? Do you need to adjust your portfolio? Are you wondering how to make ends meet? Drop us a line with your contact info and the gist of your problem and we’ll try to find some experts to help you out, while writing a Family Finance story about it (we’ll keep your name out of it, of course). If you have a simpler question, the crack team at FP Answers, led by Julie Cazzin, can give it a shot.

McLister on mortgages

Want to learn more about mortgages? Mortgage strategist Robert McLister’s Financial Post column can help navigate the complex sector, from the latest trends to financing opportunities you won’t want to miss. Plus check his mortgage rate page for Canada’s lowest national mortgage rates, updated daily.

Today’s Posthaste was written by Noella Ovid, with additional reporting from Financial Post staff, The Canadian Press and Bloomberg.

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