Building a stronger workforce: Workforce WindsorEssex launches 2024-25 Local Labour Market Plan

Workforce Windsor-Essex has released a report analyzing workforce trends in the region. CTV Windsor’s Chris Campbell breaks it down.

Workforce WindsorEssex has officially launched its 2024-2025 Local Labour Market Plan (LLMP), a comprehensive report analyzing workforce trends, challenges, and opportunities in the Windsor-Essex region.

According to Workforce WindsorEssex, this year’s plan presents an action-oriented five-pillar strategy aimed at addressing labour market needs and bolstering workforce resilience.

“The 2024-2025 Local Labour Market Plan serves as a critical tool for understanding the dynamic workforce landscape of the Windsor-Essex region,” said Tashlyn Teskey, Senior Manager of Research and Innovation, Workforce WindsorEssex.

“Our research and data highlight key opportunities and challenges, providing valuable insights for community partners, employers, and jobseekers across the region. By addressing the inclusion of underrepresented groups, enhancing retention strategies, and attracting new talent, this report lays the groundwork for sustainable workforce development.”

The LLMP incorporates data from Statistics Canada, Employment Ontario, and online job postings, along with consultations with the Workforce Advisory Committee. By leveraging these insights, Workforce WindsorEssex aims to enhance local workforce development strategies and bridge gaps between jobseekers and employers.

“This is our largest and most significant research project we do every year,” said Workforce WindsorEssex CEO, Justin Falconer.

Five Pillars for Action:

Developed in collaboration with the Workforce Advisory Committee, the Action Plan focuses on:

- Education and Training: Enhancing high school co-op placements and strengthening digital literacy.

- Skilled Trades: Encouraging youth participation in trades, promoting apprenticeships, and supporting apprenticeship completion rates.

- Meaningful Employment: Expanding job opportunities for underrepresented groups, increasing women’s workforce participation, and improving language training.

- Employer Supports: Strengthening knowledge sharing, retention strategies, and leadership training for businesses.

- Promising Sectors: Advancing workplace learning, training for health care leadership, and managing transitions in the manufacturing sector.

Labour Market Insights

The report highlights several key workforce trends and statistics:

- Population Growth: Windsor-Essex grew by 28,105 people between 2021-2023, a 6.4 per cent increase, making it the 7th fastest-growing census division in Ontario.

- Labour Market Challenges: Despite record-high employment, the region faces an 8.8 per cent unemployment rate, emphasizing the need to align workforce skills with employer demands.

Top Growing Occupations (2023-2024):

- Shelf Stockers (up 207 positions)

- Industrial and Manufacturing Engineers (up 156 positions)

- Medical Administrative Assistants (up 134 positions)

- Wholesale Sales Representatives (up 108 positions)

- Registered Nurses (up 79 positions)

Top Growing Sectors (2024):

- Transportation and Warehousing (up 53 per cent)

- Construction (up 23 per cent)

- Other Services (up 22 per cent)

- Accommodation and Food Services (up 10 per cent)

- Educational Services & Professional Services (up four per cent)

“This sort of unusually high, exciting population growth is really a feather in our cap for a region that has really suffered with population stagnation for decades,” Falconer explained.

“The population that we’re attracting is really outpacing all the exciting job gains that we’re making because 2024 was another banner year for employment in the area, and we’re at record levels of the number of people working.”

Falconer added that the problem is Windsor is a “hopeful city” as people relocate to the area because of good economic news.

“For a couple of years in a row, Windsor has been cited as leading the country in terms of economic growth and that’s created a lot of attention and interest in our area, and it’s attracted a lot of people,” he said.

“Even though we’ve added thousands and thousands of jobs, we’re just adding more people. But it also means that the employers that are coming to the area have more people to hire from. The last thing you want to be as an employer is in a really tight labor market with three per cent unemployment, because that means that you’re competing against other people who are already working, are already getting presumably good wages.”

In Windsor’s current market, there are lots of people who are willing to work and show they can do the job asked of them, according to Falconer.

“We had record number of people working in and construction. We had, I think, 14,000 people every month for October, November, December working in construction and that’s the bridge, it’s the EV plant,” he said.

“It’s their partners and supply chain and all the retrofitting that’s happening in the community. And we also noted that our hospitality and tourism sector has rebounded fully from the pandemic and back up to the sort of pre-pandemic employment levels.”

Meantime, Workforce WindsorEssex is inviting community partners, employers, and jobseekers to participate in a Community Action Planning Event on Feb. 20.

Officials said it will offer a deep dive into the report’s findings and facilitate discussions on supporting workforce growth in Windsor-Essex.

“Providing we can navigate the waters south of the border, I think we have a really exciting employment prospects for the Windsor-Essex area in 2025,” Falconer added.