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Alberta labour shortage FILE: People cross the street in Banff, Alta., THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Jeff McIntosh Housing supply<\/p>\nTourism hotspots in Alberta are facing ongoing labour shortages, with rising housing costs making it harder to attract and retain workers. Kathy Le reports. <\/p>\n
Canada\u2019s tourism industry is struggling to find workers as employers face tighter rules on foreign labour and fewer Canadians stepping into the sector.<\/p>\n
In Alberta\u2019s mountain tourism hubs, those challenges are even more complex, with employers and job seekers pointing to a lack of affordable housing as a major barrier.<\/p>\n
Just days after arriving in Banff, Gintare Dalmantaite is already looking for work.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy goal is to get a seasonal job, a summer job, and stay for however long that takes,\u201d said the 26-year-old from Lithuania.<\/p>\n
She was among hundreds of job seekers, many on work visas, attending a job fair in the Rocky Mountain town ahead of the busy summer season.<\/p>\n
\u2018I\u2019m desperate\u2019<\/p>\n
Employers say demand for workers is high.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m desperate,\u201d said Brande White with the Grizzly Paw Brewing Company in nearby Canmore. <\/p>\n
\u201cI have to find at least 35 people before June 1.\u201d <\/p>\n
Job seekers also included some Canadians, such as Jimmy Stevens, who lives in Canmore and is working multiple jobs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have two part-time jobs, but we\u2019re struggling to pay the bills every month,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Employers say that struggle is a key reason many Canadians are not taking available tourism jobs in the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last three years, I probably have 600 interviews, said White.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople can\u2019t stay, they can\u2019t find housing, or they just don\u2019t show up or can\u2019t afford it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tourism thriving in Alberta; more growth expected Alberta’s tourism industry is booming. The sector contributed over $15 billion to our economy last year, and it’s expected profit will only grow. <\/p>\n
In Banff and Canmore, a severe housing shortage, driven by high demand and limited supply, has pushed rental costs out of reach for many workers.<\/p>\n
White said her business is trying to hire locally, but many Canadians simply cannot afford to move to or stay in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are trying to hire Canadians. Anybody that\u2019s looking for a job, please come see me. We just can\u2019t find enough,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Shortages across Canada<\/p>\n
Industry experts say labour shortages in tourism are being felt across the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe limitation of immigrant students and short-term workers has definitely had an effect on the tourism industry,\u201d said Wayne W. Smith, director of the Institute for Hospitality and Tourism Research at Toronto Metropolitan University.<\/p>\n
Smith said the sector is also facing longer-term challenges, including declining enrolment in training programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re also seeing is hospitality programs around the country are being cut,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He added that the nature of tourism work makes recruitment difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hospitality industry has a couple real big challenges. One is seasonality. So basically, you\u2019re bringing in a large workforce for six months \u2026 You then add housing.\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
Alberta labour shortage FILE: People cross the street in Banff, Alta., THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Jeff McIntosh Housing supply<\/p>\n
In Banff and Canmore, that housing shortage is particularly acute.<\/p>\n
With record numbers of visitors expected this year, employers say demand for staff continues to grow.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re at full capacity of the hotel the entire week, with more reservations coming up \u2014 dinner as well as brunch,\u201d said Sergio Garcia, head chef at Juniper Hotel Bistro in Banff.<\/p>\n
While some employers offer staff accommodations, supply is limited.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do offer housing, but it\u2019s not enough. That\u2019s the problem now,\u201d Garcia said.<\/p>\n
Employers say temporary foreign workers are critical to filling gaps, but tighter federal rules and slower approval processes have made it harder to bring them in.<\/p>\n
Darren Reeder, president and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Alberta, said the labour shortage is not new, but reflects broader issues in how the industry is perceived.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople often see tourism jobs as entry-level positions with no long-term career trajectory, but in reality, there are many levels of certification and professional training people can go through,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Efforts are underway to attract more domestic workers into the sector.<\/p>\n
Smith said industry groups are working with post-secondary institutions to introduce students to tourism careers earlier.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re trying to do is build this domestic market for the local tourism industry,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
As for housing in Banff and Canmore, plans are in place to increase housing capacity, including 90 new units in Banff, but employers say it won\u2019t be enough to meet demand.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have houses right now and that\u2019s what we need,\u201d said White.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tourism hotspots in Alberta are facing ongoing labour shortages, with rising housing costs making it harder to attract…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":567485,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[712,49,48,295,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-567484","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-apple-news","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-environment","12":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=567484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567484\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/567485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=567484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=567484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=567484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}