Labour Market Insights
COVID-19’s Continued Impact on the Local Employment Landscape: Top Occupations and In-Demand Jobs for Windsor-Essex for September 2021
Although the Ontario Government has paused their exit from the Roadmap to Reopen, with the province remaining in Step Three since July 16, there have been considerable changes. As of September 22, Ontario implemented a vaccine passport system and as of September 25 increased capacity limits in many indoor public settings and in certain outdoor event venues. Locally, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) placed restrictions on restaurants, bars, and nightclubs from September 7 through October 4.
Let’s look at what this means for job search and demand in Windsor-Essex for September 2021.
September saw 6,054 total active job postings from 1,949 companies for an increase of 5.65% over the previous month’s 5,730 total active job postings. The Job Board received 18,598 interactions (an increase of 4.61% from 17,778 interactions in August) from 4,784 users (a decrease of 2.6% from the previous month).
Over the course of the pandemic, employment changes and in-demand occupations have been relatively consistent, fluctuating with public health measure announcements. When non-essential retail was closed to in-person shopping and the province was in various stages of lockdowns or shutdown, we saw an increase in demand for occupations such as Security Guards and Related Security Services Occupations; Delivery and Courier Service Drivers; and Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers. When restrictions were lifted on things like indoor and outdoor dining, we saw an increase in Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations; Cooks; and Food and Beverage Servers.
This month, we’re taking a look at occupations a little further down in the Search and Demand lists.
The top 15 searched-for occupations overall in Windsor-Essex for September 2021 were:
Retail Salespersons; Other Customer and Information Services Representatives; Administrative Assistants; Material Handlers; Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations; Delivery and Courier Service Drivers; Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations; Receptionists; Administrative Officers; Social and Community Service Workers; Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers; Transport Truck Drivers; Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities; General Office Support Workers; and Medical Administrative Assistants.
Compared to the top 15 searched-for occupations overall in Windsor-Essex for August 2021:
Retail Salespersons; Administrative Assistants; Other Customer and Information Services Representatives; Receptionists; Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations; Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities; Material Handlers; Administrative Officers; Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations; Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers; Social Workers; Food and Beverage Servers; Delivery and Courier Service Drivers; Cooks; and Professional Occupations in Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations.
The lists of the top searched-for occupations between August and September are relatively consistent with a few key differences. Those searching for Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations is down 19.29% from 334 search instances in August to 280 in September. Search instances are up in September for Delivery and Courier Service Drivers (up 33.98% from 259 searches in August to 347 searches in September) and Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations (up 33.67% from 300 searches in August to 401 searches in September). Other occupations that show up on September’s list that were not on August’s list include General Office Support Workers and Medical Administrative Assistants. These changes support the theory that people are looking to change careers, opting for more of an office setting—perhaps one where the work could largely be completed remotely—rather than one where they would be face-to-face with many customers throughout their shift. Retail Salespersons, however, remains the top searched-for occupation over both months.
The top searched-for occupations by men in Windsor-Essex for September 2021 were:
Material Handlers; Retail Salespersons; Delivery and Courier Service Drivers; Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities; Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers; Other Customer and Information Services Representatives; Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations; Transport Truck Drivers; Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations; Cashiers; Light Duty Cleaners; Construction Trades Helpers and Labourers; Shippers and Receivers; Electrical and Electronics Engineers; and Retail and Wholesale Buyers.
The top searched-for occupations by women in Windsor-Essex for September 2021 were:
Retail Salespersons; Other Customer and Information Services Representatives; Administrative Assistants; Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations; Social and Community Service Workers; Administrative Officers; Medical Administrative Assistants; Receptionists; Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations; Cashiers; Material Handlers; Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers; Retail and Wholesale Trade Managers; Accounting Technicians and Bookkeepers; and Accounting and Related Clerks.
The top 20 in-demand occupations by local employers for September 2021 were:
Retail Salespersons; Material Handlers; Transport Truck Drivers; Home Support Workers, Housekeepers and Related Occupations; Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations; Other Customer and Information Services Representatives; Cooks; Retail and Wholesale Trade Managers; Deliver and Courier Service Drivers; General Farm Workers; Store Shelf Stockers, Clerks and Order Fillers; Machinists and Machining and Tooling Inspectors; Other Labourers in Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities; Administrative Assistants; Light Duty Cleaners; Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superintendents; Security Guards and Related Security Service Occupations; Metalworking and Forging Machine Operators; Retail and Wholesale Buyers; and Machining Tool Operators.
As more establishments opened to indoor dining, they did face some challenges. On September 22, the province’s vaccination passport system came into effect, which requires patrons to show proof of vaccination to enter certain establishments or participate in activities, including indoor dining and bars, attending fitness centres, and going to the cinema. WECHU placed additional restrictions on bars, restaurants, and weddings on September 7. These restrictions banned dancing at bars, restaurants, and nightclubs, which also had to be closed by midnight. The local restrictions were lifted on October 4.
Demand for Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Support Occupations remained little changed from the previous month. Demand for Cooks decreased 32.48% from 155 job postings in August to 117 in September. Demand also decreased 72.73% for Food and Beverage Servers, from 95 job postings in August to 55 in September.
Looking at the top hiring sectors by 2-digit NAICS code, we can see some sectors increasing and decreasing in demand throughout the course of the pandemic.
Hiring in the Accommodation and Food Services sector is down 19.2% in September, from 385 job postings in August to 323 in September. This is, however, up 50.93% from 214 job postings in September 2020.
Hiring in the Retail Trade sector is also down, although it has been historically high since June 2021 and is still very much in-demand. The Retail Trade sector saw 814 job postings in September 2021, down 9.34% from 890 job postings in August. This is 70.29% higher than September 2020, which saw 478 job postings.
Hiring in the Educational Services sector is also up with 199 job postings in September from 120 job postings in August for an increase of 65.83%. This would be consistent with hiring staff in preparation for the beginning of the school year in September.
Examining the data at the 6-digit NAICS level, Full-service Restaurants saw a decline in hiring, with 171 job postings in August and 123 job postings in September for a decrease of 39.02%. Hiring in Limited-service Eating Places increased 9.73%, from 113 job postings in August to 124 job postings in September. This could be due to establishments focusing on takeout and delivery over indoor dining as there are restrictions in terms of capacity limits and vaccination passports in place that may deter customers from dining in and deter establishments from hiring staff to be able to offer indoor dining services.
Additionally, we see the detailed increase in the Education Services sector here, with 66 job postings for Educational Support Services and 62 for Elementary and Secondary Schools. These two 6-digit NAICS did not appear in August’s top 20 hiring sectors by 6-digit NAICS.
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.
