New Labour Market Data and Interactive Dashboard Examine Outlook of Canadian Mining Workforce

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Ottawa, ON, June 2, 2021

In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic upended the world. Its story within Canada’s mining labour market has been revised many times over as new data and information on global events continue to pour in daily. Today, the Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MiHR) is pleased to announce the release of two new reports that examine COVID-19’s impact on the Canadian mining workforce and forecast employment in a post-COVID-19 era.

During an interactive webinar with Jamie Wolcott, Director of Labour Market Information & Chief Economist, MiHR released COVID-19 and Labour Market Volatility in Canada’s Mining Industry along with Mining Year in Review: National Outlook 2021. MiHR also launched a new interactive data visualization dashboard that communicates current labour market information to Canadian mining stakeholders, such as labour force characteristics that include number of people employed in mining, unemployment rate, median weekly wage and percentages of underrepresented groups working in mining.

“Originally, the COVID-19 report was envisioned to be solely about employment volatility and its impact on Canada’s mining labour market,” said Wolcott. “But the magnitude of the pandemic meant that understanding its impact quickly became a priority. The resulting report captures the moment of impact and analyzes the possibility of a permanent mark being made on the industry in a post-COVID-19 period.”

MiHR produces annual projections related to Canada’s mining labour market, and the 2021 National Outlook investigates the demographic, regional and educational characteristics that describe Canada’s mining workforce, and presents three main employment scenarios for the next five years. The interactive labour market dashboard is updated monthly, providing up-to-date occupational comparisons and analysis of various factors via economic regions.

“The dashboard brings MiHR’s latest market research to life in one easy to use platform,” said Wolcott. “Labour market information helps the mining labour market function smoothly and helps both employers and job seekers to stay informed on the state of the workforce – and the findings from the case study report will also help MiHR identify opportunities to meet human resource needs and add value for mining stakeholders in the years to come.”

Click here to access the three reports, and here to view the interactive dashboard.

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About the Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MiHR)

MiHR is Canada’s knowledge centre for mining labour market information. An independent, non-profit organization, MiHR leads collaboration among mining and exploration companies, organized labour, contractors, educational institutions, industry associations and Indigenous groups to identify opportunities and address the human resource and labour market challenges facing the Canadian minerals and metals sector.

For more information about this report or MiHR, please contact:

William Meyer
Director, Marketing and Communications
The Mining Industry Human Resources Council
613.270.9696 x 58
wmeyer@mihr.ca

Photo courtesy of Iron Ore Company of Canada.