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Kanata job fair seeks to help fill vacancies

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If you’re in search of a job, the sky is the limit.

The Kanata Central BIA held an in-person job fair on Tuesday where two dozen companies, including the airline Canadian North, were looking to connect with potential employees.

With unemployment numbers low, finding workers can be turbulent.

“We have experienced some challenges, absolutely — it’s definitely an employees’ market right now, so there’s tonnes of jobs available,” said Canadian North human resources manager Stephanie McBride.

“Our head office is in Kanata, so we do have some positions there—hybrid, remote, and on-site—and we also have positions in cargo, part-time and full-time at the Ottawa Airport,” she said.

From the air to the water, Aqua-Tots is a private swim school in Kanata and, much like pools and beaches short on lifeguards, they’re looking to hire.

“We’re facing some of those similar challenges, especially when it comes to swim instructors. A lot of them have to have some sort of certification ahead of time, and we’re also starting to run some of our own courses,” said owner Rebecca Swedlove.

The job fair was held at the Kanata Holiday Inn at the Centrum, and even they’re recruiting too.

“We need room attendants, line-cooks, servers,” Holiday Inn HR manager Jennifer Major told CTV News at the event.

M Con Products is looking for manufacturers.

“We are always looking for employees. Our manufacturing plant is very large and it’s hard to keep up with the demand,” said administrator Jean Toomey.

Child-care businesses are also hiring.

“Like everyone here, we’re looking for reliable and quality people to staff daycare centres in Ottawa-Carleton,” said Kristine Berg of KRSS Services.

With some of the busiest shopping months upon us, industry experts say ongoing labour shortages have some businesses even more concerned.

“There are three problems with the economy these days, when it comes to business: one, is labour shortages; two, is labour shortages; and three, is labour shortages,” Rocco Rossi, with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce told CTV News Ottawa.

“It’s a war for talent out there. There are shortages, really, across the economy and so trying to find a new batch of workers for a shorter period of time is difficult,” he said.

Michelle Wasylyshen, National Spokesperson for the Retail Council of Canada, says labour shortages continue to be an ongoing challenge for all sectors, including retail, with Black Friday, Cyber Monday and the Christmas season coming up.

“Retailers are trying to staff up, but they continue to be impacted by the perfect trifecta of circumstances: competition in the marketplace for both full- and part-time employees, inflation impacts and a preference for remote work (particularly in smaller or more suburban areas, that simply just didn't exist before).”

At the job fair, employers like the Kanata Canadian Tire are preparing for the season.

“We’re building our Christmas department right now, trying to get all of that ready but, obviously, we’re also automotive, so tires—whenever Christmas hits, usually winter hits,” said Sarah Scaffiedi with Canadian Tire.

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