Program to target out-of-province skilled workers in 2024
Another phase of the “Alberta is Calling” campaign is coming later this year, according to a recent report.
The campaign will focus on attracting skilled workers to the province as the economy continues to expand.
“We’ve got a bit of a unique market. And I think we have the ability to continue to welcome people here,” Premier Danielle Smith told the Calgary Herald in a year-end interview. “This is the place to be.”
In 2022, the $2.6 million-campaign highlighted the many lifestyle and career advantages Alberta offers – including higher wages, shorter commutes and job opportunities.
Alberta also launched a phase of the Alberta is Calling campaign in 2023, focusing on attracting workers from across Ontario and Atlantic Canada.
More incentives to recruit workers
The campaign may also come with more incentives this time.
During last year’s election campaign, the United Conservative Party of Alberta promised to create a program and offer at least $1,200 to newcomers who relocate to the province to work in designated high-demand jobs, such as health care and trades, reported the Calgary Herald.
The Alberta is Calling signing bonus is expected to cost $17 million. Smith said more details will come out during the next provincial budget.
“We need skilled workers,” Smith said in the report.
“We know that being able to manage that growth means that we’ve got to get more boilermakers and millwrights and electricians and welders — and this is going to be our opportunity to tell the rest of the country that we love the professions and the trades, and we want you here.”
In her New Year’s Day statement, Smith also alluded to a continued campaign to attract workers to the province.
“Our government has set in motion major commitments to make Alberta a better place for everyone. We continue to see strong economic growth as we stand up for our province’s autonomy in the face of federal overreach, and we are showing the world that Alberta is still calling.
“2024 will bring our province new opportunities, and we are ready and willing to ensure we harness these new opportunities and keep Alberta as the best province in Canada to live, work and raise a family.”
This comes after the province saw its overall population grow by about 194,000 over the previous 12 months. The population now tops 4.7 million, reflecting an annual 4.3 per cent growth rate — the fastest level seen since 1980, according to the Calgary Herald.
The Job Vacancy and Wage Survey (JVWS) from Statistics Canada previously revealed that job vacancies across the country fell by 69,900 (-9 per cent) to 706,000 in the third quarter of 2023.
