Help wanted in Hamilton - Job Vacancies Full Report, 4th Q 2013

HELP WANTED in hamilton Job Vacancies Full Report: 4th Quarter 2013 Workforce Planning Hamilton releases online job vacancy statistics every quarter to capture a portion of real-time labour demand in the community. The information presented here reflects online job postings from October to December 2013.

OVERVIEW Hamilton had 6,314 unique job vacancies advertised online during the final three months of 2013, down 6% from the previous quarter. The highest number of job ads were in October, likely in part due to the upcoming holiday season where many retail employers hire additional temporary staff. With fewer job ads during the quarter, the unemployment rate in the Hamilton CMA increased, averaging at 6.9% over the three months.

October Number of Job Postings Unemployment Rate 1 (Hamilton CMA) Number of Unemployed (Hamilton CMA)2

November December

2,508

2,073

1,733

7.1%

6.8%

6.7%

27,900

26,900

26,700

The majority of job ads (75%) broadly indicated Hamilton or Hamilton region as the location of the work. Stoney Creek posted 13% of all ads, followed by Dundas with 7% and Ancaster with 5%.

TYPE OF EMPLOYMENT 3,664 job postings (58%) specified the type of employment (full-time, part-time, or full/part-time) involved in the advertised position. Of those postings, approximately 75% were for full-time work, 19% were part-time, and 6% were full/part-time.

JOB POSTINGS BY INDUSTRY Employers generally do not specify industry in a job posting. This could be due to job seekers being able to figure out the industry based on the company name or employers preferring to focus on the occupation they are seeking to fill rather than industry. Only 21% of job postings during this quarter specified their industry.

The top specified industries of quarter four: Retail and Wholesale Trade 446 – Health and Personal Care Stores 452 – General Merchandise Stores 448 – Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores 12

Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey

Prepared by: Workforce Planning Hamilton Data Source: Vicinity Jobs Inc

Manufacturing 333 – Machinery Manufacturing 311 – Food Manufacturing 332 – Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing

Educational Services 611 – Educational Services

JOB POSTINGS BY OCCUPATION The top five occupational groups accounted for 57% of all job postings in the last quarter.

Similar to previous vacancy reports, sales and service occupations continue to be the most common advertised jobs.

Management occupations are also commonly advertised online. As management occupations are typically of higher skill or require specific experience, candidates for these occupations may be more difficult to find.

Top Five Occupational Group Postings 17.6% 11.2%

10.3%

9.3%

8.7%

Sales and Service Management General Help Wanted (including warehouse) Health Administrative and Legal

SPOTLIGHT ON: Sales and Service Jobs Employing 57,675 workers, sales and service is the most common occupational group in Hamilton.32Sales and service occupations have also been the most heavily advertised jobs in each quarterly vacancy report. Many of these occupations are entry-level and provide opportunity for workers to gain both experience and in-demand employable skills.

These jobs advertisements were most commonly found in retail trade, finance and insurance, and accommodation and food service industries.

Hamilton’s Top Sales and Service Titles

Retail salespersons Food counter attendants, kitchen helpers and related support occupations Cashiers Janitors, caretakers and building superintendents Light duty cleaners Other customer and information services representatives Store shelf stockers, clerks and order fillers Cooks

3

Statistics Canada, 2011 National Household Survey

Employment (2011 National Household Survey) 10,490 5,995 4,785 3,595 3,125 2,850 2,440 2,175