Labour Market Insights
Back to Step Two: Top Occupations and In-Demand Jobs for Windsor-Essex for December 2021
The month of December 2021 saw an increase in COVID-19 cases and its subsequent impact on employment with a new, highly contagious variant on the rise. Starting January 5, 2022, Ontario moved back to Step Two of its Roadmap to Reopen. This includes virtual learning for students, reducing social gathering limits to five people indoors and 10 people outdoors, remote work where possible, closing indoor event spaces, closing indoor dining and gyms, and capacity limits for retail and various other sectors, among other public health measures. These restrictions are in effect until at least January 26 and are dependent upon public health trends and health system indicators. This came after capacity limits had been reduced by the province on December 18, which included 50% capacity for restaurants, personal care services, gyms, concert venues, retail, and other establishments.
Locally, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit released an updated Letter of Instruction on December 5 to help combat the spread of COVID-19 amid climbing case numbers, beyond provincial mandates at the time. This included limiting social gatherings to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors, additional measures for wedding receptions and social events tied to funerals and religious services, reducing capacity to 50% for bars and restaurants, and requiring face coverings in all public settings.
December saw 5,370 total active job postings from 1,615 companies, for a decrease of 24.4% over the previous month’s 7,104 total active job postings. The Job Board and Job Map received 16,829 interactions from 6,197 users (an increase of 16.4% from the previous month).
The top 15 searched-for occupations overall in Windsor-Essex for December 2021 were:
| Ranking | Searched Overall in December 2021 | Number of Search Instances (December 2021) | Net Change from November | % Change from November |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Retail Salesperson | 583 | -182 | -23.8% |
| 2 | Administrative Assistants | 544 | -286 | -34.5% |
| 3 | Other Customer and Information Services Representatives | 428 | -96 | -18.3% |
| 4 | Material Handlers | 414 | -169 | -29.0% |
| 5 | Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers | 366 | +19 | +5.5% |
| 6 | Delivery and Courier Service Drivers | 360 | -170 | -32.1% |
| 7 | Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations | 355 | -23 | -6.1% |
| 8 | Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations | 323 | +81 | +33.5% |
| 9 | Light Duty Cleaners | 262 | -31 | -10.6% |
| 10 | Transport Truck Drivers | 256 | -74 | -22.4% |
| 11 | Receptionists | 248 | -87 | -26.0% |
| 12 | Administrative Officers | 247 | -85 | -25.6% |
| 13 | Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superindendents | 223 | -47 | -17.4% |
| 14 | Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities | 201 | -157 | -43.9% |
| 15 | Accounting Technicians and Bookkeepers | 195 | -47 | -19.4% |
To learn more about the occupations listed in these tables, visit the Career Library.
With hiring for the holiday season largely in place in October and November, it is no surprise to see a decrease in interactions, especially in occupations that increased sharply leading up to the holiday season, such as Retail Salespersons and Material Handlers.
Interactions with Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations increased 33.5% in December from the previous month. Home Support Workers provide personal care and companionship for seniors, persons with disabilities, and convalescent clients. Care is provided within the client’s residence, in which the home support worker may also reside. They are employed by home care and support agencies, private households, or they may be self-employed. Housekeepers perform housekeeping and other home management duties in private households and other non-institutional, residential settings.
This increase in interactions can be broken down further. As the tables below show, interactions with Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations increased 14.5% among men and 67.2% among women.
The top 15 searched-for occupations by men in Windsor-Essex for December 2021 were:
| Ranking | Searched by Men in December 2021 | Number of Search Instances (December 2021) | Net Change from November | % Change from November |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Retail Salespersons | 159 | -31 | -16.3% |
| 2 | Delivery and Courier Service Drivers | 155 | -80 | -34.0% |
| 3 | Material Handlers | 151 | -69 | -31.4% |
| 4 | Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations | 110 | +3 | +2.8% |
| 5 | Transport Truck Drivers | 108 | -17 | -13.6% |
| 6 | Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers | 101 | -16 | -13.7% |
| 7 | Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations | 87 | +11 | +14.5% |
| 8 | Other Customer and Information Services Representatives | 87 | -7 | -7.5% |
| 9 | Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities | 73 | -59 | -44.7% |
| 10 | General Farm Workers | 69 | -33 | -32.4% |
| 11 | Light Duty Cleaners | 69 | -5 | -6.8% |
| 12 | Security Guards and Related Security Occupations | 65 | -13 | -16.7% |
| 13 | Labourers in Food and Beverage Processing | 58 | +12 | +26.1% |
| 14 | Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superintendents | 52 | -76 | -59.4% |
| 15 | Administrative Officers | 48 | -7 | -12.7% |
The top 15 searched-for occupations by women in Windsor-Essex for December 2021 were:
| Ranking | Searched by Women in December 2021 | Number of Search Instances (December 2021) | Net Change from November | % Change from November |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Retail Salespersons | 200 | +7 | +3.6% |
| 2 | Administrative Assistants | 194 | -68 | -26.0% |
| 3 | Other Customer and Information Services Representatives | 137 | +11 | +8.7% |
| 4 | Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations | 106 | +29 | +37.7% |
| 5 | Receptionists | 102 | +2 | +2.0% |
| 6 | Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations | 97 | +39 | +67.2% |
| 7 | Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers | 89 | +11 | +14.1% |
| 8 | Light Duty Cleaners | 86 | +31 | +56.4% |
| 9 | Administrative Officers | 83 | -1 | -1.2% |
| 10 | Accounting Technicians and Bookkeepers | 76 | +12 | +18.8% |
| 11 | Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superindendents | 68 | +25 | +6.9% |
| 12 | Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities | 66 | +8 | +13.8% |
| 13 | Material Handlers | 60 | -18 | -23.1% |
| 14 | Social and Community Service Workers | 58 | -53 | -47.8% |
| 15 | Retail and Wholesale Trade Managers | 58 | +2 | +3.6% |
The top 20 in-demand occupations by local employers for December 2021 were:
| Ranking | In-Demand Occupation for December 2021 | Posting Count (December 2021) | Net Change from November | % Change from November |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Retail Salespersons | 252 | -189 | -6.77% |
| 2 | Transport Truck Drivers | 163 | -7 | -4.1% |
| 3 | Material Handlers | 117 | -76 | -39.4% |
| 4 | Other Customer and Information Services Representatives | 117 | -28 | -19.3% |
| 5 | Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations | 114 | -3 | -2.6% |
| 6 | Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations | 104 | -36 | -25.7% |
| 7 | Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers | 99 | -22 | -18.2% |
| 8 | General Farm Workers | 95 | -17 | -15.2% |
| 9 | Retail and Wholesale Trade Managers | 93 | -40 | -30.1% |
| 10 | Administrative Assistants | 93 | -29 | -23.8% |
| 11 | Electrical and Electronics Engineers | 84 | -37 | -30.6% |
| 12 | Delivery and Courier Service Drivers | 81 | -27 | -25.0% |
| 13 | Cooks | 68 | -36 | -34.6% |
| 14 | Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities | 67 | -22 | -24.7% |
| 15 | Security Guards and Related Security Service Occupations | 64 | -15 | -19.0% |
| 16 | Other Financial Officers | 63 | -29 | -31.5% |
| 17 | Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superintendents | 62 | -25 | -28.7% |
| 18 | Retail Sales Supervisors | 61 | -3 | -4.7% |
| 19 | Accounting Technicians and Bookkeepers | 60 | -21 | -25.9% |
| 20 | Administrative Officers | 58 | +10 | +20.8% |
While Retail Salespersons remains the top in-demand occupation in the region, it has decreased in December, as to be expected, following the seasonal increase in hiring and a decrease in job postings overall for the month. Many companies postpone the interviewing, hiring, and onboarding process until after the new year begins. Job postings in 19 of the top 20 occupations hired for in Windsor-Essex decreased, with the only increase in hiring being for Administrative Officers.
Looking at hiring by 6-digit NAICS points to a demand for employees in the Health Care and Social Assistance sector, however the demand is lower in December than it was in November for Nursing Care Facilities (down 13.3% from 105 postings in November to 91 in December), Community Care Facilities for the Elderly (down 13.6% from 66 postings in November to 57 in December), General (Except Paediatric) Hospitals (down 34.5% from 84 postings in November to 55 in December), and Community Health Centres (down 25.7% from 70 postings in November to 52 in December).
This is further demonstrated in hiring by 2-digit NAICS:
While demand in the Health Care and Social Assistance Sector declined 21.9% from 661 postings in November to 516 in December, it is still up 62.3% from 318 postings in December 2020 and up 111.5% from 244 postings in December 2019.
As well, job postings for the Retail Trade sector decreased 31.5% (from 1,049 postings in November to 719 in December), it is still 105.4% higher than the 350 job postings in December 2020 and 101.4% higher than 357 job postings from December 2019.
The Accommodation and Food Services; Arts, Entertainment and Recreation; and Information and Cultural Industries sectors also saw a decrease in hiring for December from the previous month (33.3%, 19.1%, and 33.7%, respectively), which could be attributed to the previously-mentioned public health measures put into place by the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit well before the provincial restrictions came into place.
THE FINDINGS OF THIS REPORT WERE SOURCED FROM:
MONTHLY JOB DEMAND REPORT
ABOUT THIS REPORT:
As of April 2019, the monthly Job Demand Report for Windsor-Essex is created by Workforce WindsorEssex using data collected from 14 unique national, provincial and locally-significant job boards. Between May 2017 and March 2019, job posting data was purchased from CEB Talent Neuron.
MONTHLY JOB SEARCH REPORT
The monthly Job Search Report for Windsor-Essex is created by Workforce WindsorEssex using data collected from four job finding tools, including WEexplore, WEmap jobs, WEjobs board, and the Bridge Timeline Tool. Gender and age information of users is voluntarily shared with the organization.
Questions? Please contact: info@workforcewindsoressex.com.
