Thinking of applying for a Canada work permit? The timing seems just about apt as Alberta businesses plan to increase the size of their workforces, as per the BMO Hiring Report that was released earlier this week.

The report suggests that 35% of Alberta businesses intend to hire more people as compared to the national average of 26%.

In addition, 59% of the businesses in Alberta say that they would maintain the size of their existing workforce. Overall 66% businesses in Canada feel the same way.

According to the report’s predictions, the net hiring intentions for businesses in 2014 are as follows: 18% in manufacturing; 17% in the service sector; and 7% in the retail sector.

A rebound in economic growth in the second quarter and expectations for solid growth are going to increase the employment prospects, according to BMO Economics.

“Service-sector job growth has been much stronger than manufacturing sector job growth in the past year,” said Robert Kavcic, senior economist with BMO Capital Markets. “Looking ahead, we expect manufacturing and export-related industries to pick up on the back of stronger US demand and the lagged impact of the weaker loonie. Exports climbed 1.1% in June and the upward trend can support an increase in Canadian employment levels.”

Kavcic also said that service-sector employment would remain sturdy, especially in business and professional services, health care and education, whereas there could be a slight loss in momentum in the retail and construction employment.

The report also suggests that 55% of large businesses (with 50 employees or more) plan to increase the size of their workforce while 24% of small businesses (with 10 employees or fewer) also plan to hire this calendar year.

In Canada, Alberta continues to have the strongest labour market.

According to data by Statistics Canada, the unemployment rate in Alberta dropped in July to 4.5% from 4.9%. This is the second lowest figure in Canada, following Saskatchewan’s 3.3%. On a monthly basis, Alberta saw a loss of 5,000 (0.2%) job positions. Nevertheless, year-over-year the province has created 62,600 jobs for an employment increase of 2.8%.

Source: edmontonjournal.com