More than 1,000 manufacturing jobs unfilled in London, Ont. area: CME

An autoworker stands on the production line for the Honda CRV, at a Honda plant in Alliston, Ont., on Wednesday, March 16, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

New data is revealing that more than 1,000 manufacturing jobs in the London are going unfilled — and with the arrival of new manufacturing facilities in the near future, the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters fears the problem will get worse.

According to an analysis by Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) and data from Statistics Canada, London and area manufacturers continue to face significant labour and workforce needs with more than 1,000 jobs currently unfilled, more than 3,000 new manufacturing jobs expected in the future, and “significant” retirements between now and 2028.

Most of the new job opportunities coming to the region are expected in the EV sector, including Volkswagen’s new EV battery cell gigafactory in St. Thomas. The arrival of the new facility is expected to create 3,000 new jobs alone.

The CME said that across Ontario, “widespread” manufacturing job vacancies are impacting the province, with 18,900 vacancies in total.

“In addition, a significant proportion of manufacturing employees are baby boomers and nearing the end of their working careers,” the CME said. “Based on Ontario’s share of those workers, CME estimates that the province could see as many as 18,500 retirements every year between now and 2034.”

As a result, the CME is calling on the Ontario government in a new report to “strengthen its approach to training and upskilling” in anticipation of shortages and the fact that many of the new jobs require advanced skills and expertise.

The new report builds on consultations made last year to support the work of the Ontario Advanced Manufacturing Council and CME's Manufacturing Canada's Future report. The recommendations for the province include:

• Double down on its efforts to bring industry and education institutions together to address skills gaps and better plan training opportunities with Regional Industry Councils (RICs)
• Augment the Ontario Made Manufacturing Investment tax credit with matching support for employer-led training
• Better align the Provincial Nominee Program with the needs of employers and workers to help replenish an aging workforce

“Although the Ontario government is making strides in restoring a welcoming climate for manufacturing investment, the province still has a significant amount of catching up to do to remain competitive against U.S. counterparts,” the CME said.

 

What other regions are being impacted?

London does not find itself alone in the sheer number of manufacturing job vacancies however.

Toronto (7,545), Kitchener-Waterloo (3,020), and Hamilton-Niagara (2,395) have the highest rates of job vacancies, with Windsor-Sarnia (1,600), London (1,050) and Ottawa (980) following behind.

With the arrival of new manufacturing jobs coming to the region via the Volkswagen plant in St. Thomas and the NextStar Energy facility in Windsor, CME expects the situation to worsen.

“More than ever, manufacturing is critical to Ontario’s future,” said Dennis Darby, president and CEO of CME. “These recently announced manufacturing investments signal that Ontario is on the path to restoring a welcoming manufacturing climate. However, the reality is that we do not have the trained workforce to fulfill the jobs these investments will deliver.”