Labour Market Project – Toro Marketing
Posted on Friday, April 3rd, 2009
Submitted by: Ann MacGillivray
Employment Navigators
The Labour Market Project was implemented at the end of September 2008 and ran to the end of February 2009. The focus was to research issues around the business capacity for human resource planning in the Ladysmith area. With employers reaching out to local employment service providers for assistance not only with recruiting the right talent for their businesses, but also in an effort to evaluate their policies and procedures to ensure they are operating in a manner that is ethical, supportive and conducive to long term employment.
The LMP researched the human resource planning needs of the business community, then prepared and presented the information and tools specific to these topics, encompassing the unique challenges faced by individual communities.
Employment Navigators subcontracted the project to Toro Marketing Research who, in turn, conducted research with local employers to identify the gap between employment and employee retention.
After initially sharing the findings with the Steering Committee; two excellent presentations were given:
- To the Ladysmith Downtown Business Association
- To the Ladysmith Chamber of Commerce
The Labour Market Project makes for interesting reading identifying specific needs of both employees and employers in the Ladysmith area. In the coming 12 years, the current estimates provided by WorkBC indicate half of the new jobs will result from economic growth and the other half will replace retiring workers.
- Download the survey (116k PDF)
- Download the presentation (800k PDF)
Labour activity, as we have seen in recent months can shift dramatically from shortage of skilled workers to an abundance of qualified people looking for work. When the LMP was launched it was classified as an “employees market”, with an abundance of positions available for prospective employees, within six months the market shifted to an “employers market” with many over qualified workers applying for positions.
It is important employers remain informed, prepared, and proactive to the current market trends no matter which shift pattern they are currently experiencing.
Ann MacGillivray
Executive Director
Employment Navigators
Funded in whole or part through the Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Development Agreement.
