'Serious labour shortage' holding Alberta's tourism sector back: industry advocates
Alberta's tourism sector has a "serious labour shortage" that can threaten its long-term viability, a new labour study has found.
The Tourism Industry Association of Alberta (TIAA) says most businesses are reporting significant difficulty in finding personnel to fill vacant positions just months away from the start of Alberta's peak tourism season.
According to the industry survey, recruitment, retention and "competition" from other sectors are further compounding labour issues and the inflation crunch.
"COVID-19 caused significant disruption to our tourism labour market," said Darren Reeder, TIAA president.
"Today, the sector continues to have much fewer workers than pre-pandemic times," he said. "As a result, as pent-up travel demand rebounds, tourism businesses will not be able to likely meet the demand with their existing labour force."
Carried out from November 2022 to March 2023, Tourism HR Canada worked with the TIAA to survey and consult businesses and Albertans while monitoring Statistics Canada data on job vacancies, number of travellers and employment figures.
The study aimed to find factors hindering growth of tourism in Alberta and recovery from the pandemic. It was presented Wednesday to industry leaders.
Ultimately, the report made 30 recommendations involving the provincial and federal levels of government, including:
- immigration streams and policies need to be more accessible for small and medium companies involved in tourism;
- reframing narratives of tourism employment to increase its attractiveness and competitiveness; and
- reducing barriers to careers in tourism, like lack of housing or transportation options.
For Reeder, labour shortages in the sector are nothing new, they were made "significantly worse" by the pandemic.
"We've not professionalized careers in tourism," he added. "You ask people about tourism, many people would describe it as something they do in between their career pursuit or what I am doing with my education.
"This is very unlike what we see in Europe, where there are lifelong careers and professionalization [opportunities]."
He hopes the province works with post-secondary institutions to create more micro-credentials and streams to allow tourism workers to specialize and recognize their achievements.
Mark von Schellwitz, Restaurants Canada spokesperson, said 18,000 workers are needed in just the restaurant side of the sector in Alberta.
One of the most common concerns he hears from eateries and pubs is they lack staff in general, let alone seasonal workers. From a small to medium size business perspective, using immigration programs to attract foreign workers or temporary hires is out of reach.
"The big chains, they have that HR capability where they can actually use some of these immigration programs," he explained. "The small little guys, it's just too much red tape for them to access those programs."
"There's still a long ways to go to make this easier."
As concerns with COVID-19 faded, the sector was largely carried by domestic travellers in 2021 and 2022, Reeder said. Now, as inflation eats into Canadians' disposable income, the sector is already seeing a slight slowdown.
"The need for the overseas and international market to come back has never been more important," he added.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
What Canadians think of the latest Liberal budget
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Her fiance has been in prison for 49 years. She's trying to free him before it’s too late
She was lying in bed on a Thursday morning, thinking about the man she loved, hoping to win his freedom before time ran out.