The 2022 British Columbia (BC) Labour Market Outlook (LMO) released early February provides British Columbians with an understanding of what in-demand skills and job opportunities are going to see the largest increase and employment need for the coming decade. The LMO is based on an amalgamation of variables pertaining to things such as demographic and industry trends, and other micro- and macro-ranging economic trends.

Employment rates in BC, just like the rest of the country and across the world, are at a record high and is not expected to come down any time soon. As more jobs become available on the market, employers around the world are facing challenges finding enough trained workers to meet their needs.

In BC alone, 1,017,000 job openings are expected between 2022 and 2032. Of these, 37 percent are due to expansion in the economy and 63 percent are due to the need to replace retiring workers. This means that there will be a need for external migration and the continuation of policies that invest in human capital.

Over the next ten years, close to 73 percent of the projected job openings in BC are in the following top five occupational groups with Sales, Business, and Management representing just over half:

• Sales and Services (208,500 job openings; 21 percent of total)
• Business, Finance and Administration (158,300 job openings; 16 percent of total)
• Management (149,900 job openings; 15 percent of total)
• Trades, Transport and Equipment Operators and Related (117,100 job openings; 12 percent of total
• Education, Law and Social, Community and Government Services (112,600 job openings; 11 percent of total)

The top major industry groups in terms of job openings through the forecast period are:

*Courtesy of B.C.’s Labour Market Outlook:2022-2032 Forecast (pg. 12., 2023)

The trades occupations with the highest projected job openings over the next ten years related to our industry are:

• Automotive service technicians, truck and bus mechanics and mechanical repairers,
• Heavy equipment operators (except crane),
• Heavy-duty equipment mechanics, and
• Motor vehicle body repairers.

In the coming years the skills and training needed to support these growing industries will also emphasise principles of Clean Economy, which relates to growing the economy while addressing climate change and the environment, and Care Economy, which provides services that care for the wellbeing of people (B.C.’s Labour Market Outlook, 2022).

To help support skills training, the BC Trucking Association Mandatory Entry Level Training Grant Opportunity provides funding to motor carrier members to support relevant skills training for unemployed or currently underemployed employees to the needs of the business and the participant’s job. BCTA is the administrator for this grant opportunity and funds accessed will be used to pay for Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) throughout BC. Learn more about the grant here.

Source:

B.C.’s Labour Market Outlook: 2022 Edition. (2023). WorkBC. Retrieved February 15, 2023, from https://www.workbc.ca/research-labour-market/bcs-labour-market-outlook-2022-edition