P.E.I. businesses struggle to find employees for tourism and construction seasons
It’s a tricky time to be a enterprise proprietor in search of workers, that’s notably true for these gearing up for the height tourism and development seasons on Prince Edward Island.
The island is going through a labour scarcity.
Robert Godfrey, Larger Charlottetown Space Chamber of Commerce CEO, stated that is the time of yr when tourism companies go on a hiring blitz, however many homeowners are arising empty-handed.
“They’re working the entrance strains themselves, they’re doing no matter they must in an effort to hold their companies going,” stated Godfrey. “In entrance of what’s going to be an amazing season, actually, when it comes to numbers, on the tourism aspect specifically.”
He stated house owners are providing perks to attempt to get workers to decide on them.
“Some individuals are paying extra, some individuals are doing flex hours,” stated Godfrey. “They’re retention, they’re how they’ll appeal to workers.”
The employee scarcity isn’t new. It existed earlier than the pandemic, however it’s gotten worse.
The development business on the island is booming however is stifled by a scarcity of workers.
“As a result of we’ve seen such a growth within the business previously two years,” stated Alicia Packwood of the Canadian House Builders’ Affiliation of P.E.I. “The dockets of labor is way greater than it was, so it’s not simply filling the traditional vacancies, it’s elevated vacancies that they’re making an attempt to fill.”
She stated house owners are taking up tasks two and three years out. The identical variety of jobs are getting finished, however clients are ready for much longer.
