Thousands of Canada jobs for railway traffic controllers and marine traffic regulators are forecast to go begging for a lack of qualified workers to fill them over the next nine years unless foreign nationals seeking to gain their permanent residence in Canada agree to move here.

Job Bank, the federal job-hunting and career-planning website, lumps in railway traffic controllers and marine traffic regulators, categorized under the National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021 system with the code 72604, along with other transportation officers and controllers.

The government website is forecasting a shortfall of 6,000 of these workers from now through to 2031.

“For transportation officers and controllers, over the period 2022 – 2031, new job openings arising from expansion demand and replacement demand are expected to total 17,100, while 11,100 new job seekers arising from school leavers, immigration and mobility are expected to be available to fill them,” forecasts Job Bank.

“With the quick post-pandemic demand recovery for this occupational group, the projected number of job openings is expected to substantially surpass the projected number of job seekers, significantly enough to not only eliminate the temporary surplus situation seen over the 2019 – 2021 period, but to also turn it around to a shortage situation over the 2022-2031 period.”

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With Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) changing Canada’s Express Entry system to allow it to target 82 jobs in healthcare, technology, trades, transport and agriculture this summer – including railway traffic controllers and marine traffic regulators – it opened the door to a new pathway to immigration for them.

The flagship Express Entry selection system had previously only conducted draws based on immigration programs, not by targeting specific occupations.

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Ottawa made the changes to help resolve serious labour shortages in Canada, providing an opportunity for qualified foreign nationals to gain their permanent residence here through occupation-targeted Express Entry system draws.

“Everywhere I go, I’ve heard loud and clear from employers across the country who are experiencing chronic labour shortages,” said then-Immigration Minister Sean Fraser.

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“These changes to the Express Entry system will ensure that they have the skilled workers they need to grow and succeed.  We can also grow our economy and help businesses with labour shortages while also increasing the number of French-proficient candidates to help ensure the vitality of French-speaking communities.”

Job Bank pegs the median hourly wage for railway traffic controllers and marine traffic regulators in Canada at $45.50 but that varies from a low of $26.38 right up to $58.70.

Based on a standard, 37.5-hour work week, that means railway traffic controllers and marine traffic regulators can expect to earn up to $114,465 per year in Canada.

In mid-September, the Indeed.ca job-hunting website listed 3,889 transportation sector jobs across Canada.

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Candidates hoping to immigrate through Express Entry occupation-targeted draws need at least six months of continuous work experience in Canada or abroad within the past three years in one of these occupations to be eligible, experience that can have been gained while working in Canada as temporary foreign workers with a work permits or as an international student with a student visa.

Under the changes announced at the end of May, the Express Entry streams, including the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) program, Federal Skilled Trades (FST) program and Canadian Experience Class (CEC), as well as parts of the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP) are now more responsive to labour market needs.

Twice As Many Occupations Facing Labour Shortages Now Than Before The Covid-19 Pandemic

Canada first signalled its intention to start occupation-specific draws through Express Entry in June last year, when changes were made to the Immigration, Refugee and Protection Act to allow invitations based on occupations and other attributes, such as language ability.

The majority of Canada’s provinces have been issuing occupation-specific invitations for several years.

Under the changes to the act, the immigration minister is required to consult provinces and territories, members of industry, unions, employers, workers, worker advocacy groups, settlement provider organizations, and immigration researchers and practitioners, before announcing new categories.

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IRCC must also report to parliament each year on the categories that were chosen and the reason for the choices.

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) says the number of occupations facing shortages doubled between 2019 and 2021. From 2018 to 2022, federal high skilled admissions accounted for between 34 and 40 per cent of overall French-speaking admissions outside Quebec, which manages its own immigration intake.

Are you ready to live and work in Canada? Fill out our free evaluation form to find out if you are eligible.

Become the right candidate with the job you always wanted with our online IELTS and EECP packages at skilledworker.com.

We are accepting international entrepreneurs to join our Start-Up Visa projects in Canada. Read more here.