Canada recently launched a new immigration pilot for rural and northern communities. Submission of applications will begin this fall. Meanwhile, we’ll tell you what professions are most in demand in rural Canada.
Some people think that there are no job opportunities in the rural areas of Canada, therefore this part of the country in no way can attract city dwellers. In fact, rural communities suffer from a lack of labour force. Here are 10 popular occupations that are needed in all Canadian provinces.
10. Doctors
Rural areas of Canada are experiencing an acute shortage of medical workers. The point is not that Canada needs more doctors — from 2007 to 2012 the growth in the number of health care specialists outstripped the population growth. The point is that skilled doctors are unevenly distributed. While 21% of the Canadian population lives in rural areas, only 9% of doctors practice there, which means there is a significant number of job vacancies in the health care sector.
9. Lawyers
Again, Canada does not need more lawyers — in large cities such as Calgary, Toronto, and Vancouver, there are more lawyers than the labour market needs, but they are in demand in smaller communities and rural areas. The average age of lawyers in small towns in British Columbia varies from 52 to 65 years. Since 75% of law students are planning to work in a big city, there is a risk that there will be a shortage of these specialists in small communities in the near future. In other words, people interested in law practice may have more career opportunities in small towns.
8. Nurses
The Canadian Nurses Association predicts that by the year 2022, around 60,000 nursing jobs will be vacant. The shortage of these specialists will be even pronounced in northern, remote, and rural communities. As the population ages and experienced nurses retire, the demand for these workers will increase throughout the country.
7. Web Designers and Developers
In the digital age, some types of work can be done remotely, such as web design and web development. And this is great news for rural areas. As long as there is a reliable Internet connection in your area (you need to make sure there is before you move there), you can work from any place on your own schedule and still have the opportunity to work on creative, serious projects.
6. Funeral Agents
The aging of the population means that funeral agents are in great demand, especially in small towns, where there can only be one funeral home per community. 43% of the directors of funeral agencies in rural Canada will retire in the next 10 years, and someone will need to take their place.
5. Agricultural Workers
Currently, the Canadian agriculture sector lacks nearly 60,000 farmers engaged in primary production. And since Canada is the world’s fifth largest agricultural exporter, these vacancies are critically needed to generate at least C$106 billion that the sector contributes to the Canadian economy. Although part of the deficit is attributed to seasonal workers, full-time workers are also scarce.
4. Maintenance Workers
As more people retire and move to their country cottages and more people prefer to settle away from the cities, the demand for maintenance workers continues to grow in small towns and rural areas. Over the next 10 years, it is expected that over 20% of service personnel in rural areas will retire, so their positions will be vacant.
3. Scientists
It is forecasted that jobs in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics will be abundant in the near future, with many occupations, including those in the environmental protection, natural resource management, mining, and biotechnology, being as demanded in rural areas as in urban ones.
2. Caregivers
As the population of Canada is aging, and more people are retiring and leaving cities, nurses, employees of nursing homes and heads of nursing homes are becoming sought-after workers.
1. Teachers
The labour market for teachers in primary and secondary schools is quite saturated in large urban centers, but if you want to go farther from the cities, you can quickly find a job. Particularly interesting opportunities are available in indigenous schools throughout the country.