At the risk of blowing up this discussion again, there is another side to a low jobless rate. Local industry have trouble recruiting the skilled trades they need. Several local industries have expressed this concern to me. Some of the trades that are a current challenge, according to industry, include:
- truck drivers
- welders
- machine operators
The Workforce Planning Board of Waterloo Wellington Dufferin is presently undertaking a research report entitled “Supply and Demand Study – Manufacturing Wellington” which is looking at such things as supply and demand within local industry sectors, shifting skill levels among growing industries and labour market opportunities. This report will not be available until early next year.
In the meantime, those looking for work in the community might consider looking into what training opportunities are available to align their skills with those that are in short supply in the community. This might not work for everyone – so please no insult is intended – just a suggestion.
Mayor Karen Farbridge's Blog 
September 25, 2011 at 8:30 am
Thank-you Mayor Farbridge for highlighting some of the gaps we are seeing in employment. This will be an ongoing challenge, particularly in the area of skilled trades. Contestoga is under enrolled in their welding program and we have several businesses looking for welders as an example. As you know, the City, Chamber of Commerce, and educational institutes continue to try to align our labour pool with business needs. Two other suggestions from http://www.guelphchamber.com:
1) The City, University, and Chamber have created a joint business directory that can be accessed via the Guelph Chamber of Commerce homepage under “Business Directory”. People can search our 2800 listed businesses by key words. Keyword “employment” example below lists agencies to help with employment: http://www.guelphchamber.com/irmdirectory1.aspx#action=Search&value=employment&cid=119&did=21&listingType=O
2) Youth unemployment does continue to be high locally and nationally. Employers can access Guelph’s co-op student programs on a new web page:
http://test3.stevemillsdesign.com/co-op_recruitment.php
We will never have 100% employment, and being unemployed or under-employed is a challenge many are facing, but it is encouraging to see our unemployed dropping from almost 7,000 to under 4,000. Under-employment and those who have stopped looking are outside these numbers, but hopefully opportunities our businesses are creating will connect with more looking for a new challenge.