The Research
Objectives
This report continues research initiated in March 2020 dealing with skills, training and labour market issues. The overall purpose of the research is to understand the experiences of Alberta employers.
Methodology
Between October 31st to December 3rd, 2023, an online survey was completed by businesses within Alberta. In all, 260 employers completed the survey which was administered on the Alida platform by the Alberta Chambers of Commerce to members and other affiliated organizations. In addition, 197 employers agreed to answer a secondary set of follow-up questions.
How we’ll use our findings
- Broaden and deepen the evidence the ACC and local chambers can bring forward to articulate the perspectives of the province’s business community
- Understand the reality faced by our business community
- Make the research available to individual chambers
Key Findings
- Eight in ten organizations (79%) report they have experienced a skills shortage in the last year or two
- The biggest barrier among organizations when hiring, is finding people with the technical skills they need (86%)
- Many organizations (56%) have adjusted to being short of some skills or lowered their expectations of the level of skills they can hire (52%)
- One-quarter (26%) have had to hire out of province to find the skills they need, increasing to one-third whose biggest hiring challenge is technical skills.
- Employers are divided over whether finding people with the technical (53%) or people skills (47%) they need is their biggest challenge in hiring.
- Half of organizations report there are non-trade skills and occupations used in their organization where on-the-job learning can replicate the apprenticeship type model to develop the talent they need (while 23% are already doing this)
- In terms of Work Integrated Learning, 45% indicate they would consider providing WIL opportunities to post-secondary students as a strategy to recruit or acquire skilled workers (while 13% are currently doing this).