Canada has more than enough job opportunities and actively seeks people to employ. When it comes to working in Canada, the nation does not discriminate. It employs people from all works of life and promises them wages or salaries that will support anything from fair living to quality and extravagant living.
Canada Job Industries
In Canada, jobs are classified under these major job industries:
- Service industry
- Manufacturing industry
- Natural resources
- Mining and agriculture
Service Industry
The service industry houses the highest number of job opportunities in Canada and pulls 75% of all Canadian employees. It includes major sectors like:
- Healthcare and social services
- Educational services
- Tourism and culture
- Entertainment and sports
- Transportation and logistics
- Wholesale and retail
- Hospitality and catering
- Information and Communication Technology
A 2021 statistics by ibisworld.com has revealed that the biggest sectors by employment in Canada all belong to the service industry. The table below gives a summary of the statistics.
| Sector | 2021 Employment Number |
| Hospitals in Canada | 651,355 |
| Restaurants in Canada (Full Service) | 557,859 |
| Supermarkets and Retail Shops in Canada | 398,942 |
| Quick Service or Fast Food Restaurants in Canada | 394,134 |
| Universities & Colleges in Canada | 318,727 |
| IT services in Canada | 284,202 |
| Commercial Banking in Canada | 281,293 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores in Canada | 188,396 |
| Car Dealers in Canada | 170,024 |
| Office Stamping & Temp Agencies in Canada | 152,842 |
As statistical data has shown the healthcare and social services sector employs more people than any other sector in Canada. The nation actively seeks healthcare workers to cater to its rapidly growing population of citizens and residents through its publicly funded healthcare system. It is therefore very favorable to immigrants who are willing and qualified to work as doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, etc.
Manufacturing Industry
In Canada, the manufacturing industry consists of sectors like:
- Printing and paper production
- Mining machinery manufacturing
- Agricultural machinery manufacturing
- Meat processing
- Seafood processing
- Plastic production
- Wine production, etc
The industry accounts for about 2 million or more jobs. Unlike the service industry whose job opportunities are concentrated in the Cross Metropolitan Areas, the manufacturing industry has opportunities for everyone from the countryside to the coastal areas, to the cities.
Natural Resource Industry
The natural resource industry houses some of the highest paying jobs in Canada. It provides opportunities in sectors involved in the extraction or exploitation of natural resources such as water, gold, silver, uranium, clean energy, and of course, oil and gas which Canada is a top producers of globally.
Mining and Agricultural Industry
This industry largely employs farmers, miners, wholesalers and retailers, specialists, researchers, geneticists and many more. The opportunities in this industry are much more than many people realize as it accepts people from all educational levels and skill range.
With Canada being a country that is big on mechanized farming and agricultural produce processing, the sector needs the hand of automobile technicians, geneticists, lab scientists, programmers, data analysts and researchers, to mention but a few.
Less skilled job opportunities available in the industry include the role farmers, harvesters, record keepers, customer care representatives, drivers, etc.
Job Finder Websites
What has made finding a job in Canada even easier is the availability of job finder sites. Some of them provide information on hundreds of random jobs available while others are more specific about the kind of job vacancies they put out. In this section, you will find lots of sites that have been proven to be effective for finding jobs in Canada.
General Job Finder Websites
Jooble
Jooble is a free job search resource. The Jooble platform is among the TOP-5 websites in the world in terms of traffic in the Jobs and Career segment, according to SimilarWeb. We love Jooble has been helping people to find jobs over the last 15 years in 71 countries. Check them out for jobs corporate companies, social networks, NGOs, charitable organizations, and much more.
Monster
Monster is not a job listing site popular in Canada alone as it is one of the most recognized sites in the world for that purpose. You will find more than enough standard job opportunities on the site. Monster also offers expert advice on career-related FAQs to its site visitors.
Eluta
Eluta lists out job vacancies from organizations that can be classified as the best of the best and fall under Canada’s top 100 employers. Such organizations include Shell and Siemens amongst others.
Workopolis
Workopolis is a Canadian job listing site that also provides resources that are useful for guiding the application process to the various job vacancies it uploads.
Wow Jobs
For a job finder site based in Canada, Wow Jobs uploads job vacancies that amount to a whopping 100,000 or more per time. You will find it useful for finding job vacancies in any of the Canadian sectors and industries.
Student Job Finder Websites
Canada is one of the countries where students never find it hard to get employment after study. Even while studying, students may decide to go for part-time or summer jobs. These websites will help in your search for jobs as a student or as a recent graduate.
Student Job Bank
As a government site, Student Job Banks lists out only genuine and quality job vacancies available for students. The site will expose you to opportunities in your area of study that are related to the specific industry you wish to enter after school.
Federal Student Work Experience Program
The Federal Student Work Experience Program exposes students to opportunities in finance, communications, and IT that are available with the government. To apply for this program, students must meet certain eligibility criteria but are not required to have any previous work experience.
Summer Jobs Canada
While you are still a student, Summer Jobs Canada can provide you will a list of jobs that you can easily apply for during your summer break or expose you to other internship opportunities while feeding you with tips for getting into your dream job industry.
Other Industry Specific Job Finding Sites
Specific job finder websites may prove to be more effective in finding a job as you will be able to find more opportunities that are related to your field of interest compared to general websites.
Media Job Search Canada
With the media being a competitive sector in Canada, a site like Media Job Search will readily provide you with vacancies you can easily jump on. The site managers also provide free resources that will help you to beat competition such as how to create convincing resumes and other important tips.
IT Jobs
IT Jobs is the largest of all specific job listing sites in Canada with a reputation that has been built from about 15 years ago. The site lists job opportunities from tech, finance, consultation, and any other sector that needs to employ technology-inclined, skilled, and specialized applicants.
In-Transit
As the name implies, in-transit lists out opportunities available for interested applicants in the transportation industry.
Canadian Forests
With the forestry sector being one of the main drivers of the Canadian economy. There exist many job opportunities here and Canadian Forests will help you find them.
Professional Immigrant Networks
Still on the search for job opportunities, Professional Immigrant Networks (PINs) are useful organizations that implement connections between immigrants and their potential employers, the government, immigrant-serving agencies, community groups, and other stakeholders. In Canada, there are several PINs representing many industry sectors like:
- Architecture/Urban Planning
- Business
- Education
- Engineering
- Finance
- Healthcare
- IT
- Legal
- Sciences, etc.
A global platform like meetup.com can help you find Canada-based PINs that are relevant to your dream job.
Workers’ Rights in Canada
Your goal of finding a job is to be employed so you should be exposed to what you could call your rights and privileges as a Canadian worker or employee.
Your rights as an employee in Canada are embodied under the Employment Standards or Federal Labor Standards. These are the law-established minimum standards that protect you in your workplace. Employment standards differ slightly across provinces and territories but usually cover issues like minimum wage, working hours, overtime pay, vacation periods and pay, medical leaves, termination procedures, etc.
Except for those who are working as farmworkers, salespersons, home care givers, loggers, etc, who may or may not be subject to these standards, they apply to all employees, especially those who can be said to be working white-collar jobs.
Some of the Employment Rights in Canada are:
- The minimum wage is the lowest pay any employer in Canada can pay his employee. The minimum wage differs across the provinces and the territories.
- Employers cannot force workers to work excessive hours and cannot refuse to pay their overtime rates if they do agree to work than the legal working hours.
- Employees must be paid at the stipulated periods and given a statement indicating their wages and the deductions made from that pay to cover things like tax or insurance.
- Employers must provide their workers with a meal break of half an hour or more after a period of working for five hours.
- Workers have the right to an annual vacation with a stipulated payment.
Facts about Work and Working in Canada
As you are seeking to immigrate to Canada, these facts about employment and job finding will prepare your mind about the working norm in the country and can help you easily align to the processes.
- Tech Jobs are in High Demand in Canada
Although the healthcare sector employs the highest number of hands, the technology sector, particularly, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is rapidly blooming and needs as many qualified people as possible to fill vacancies. British Columbia and Ontario are the provinces with the highest need for tech employees and they have put in place structures that are meant to specifically attract foreign workers who are qualified to work in the field.
- Graduates do not find it Hard to get Jobs Related to their Field of Study
Canada has provided the Post Graduate Work Permit Program (PGWP) for eligible graduates who have rounded up their tertiary education at a Designated Learning Institution (DLI) to work in Canada for up to 3 years. Asides from this provision, over 90% of graduates find employment in sectors related to their field of study within two years of graduating from school.
- Canada needs Immigrants who are Educated
Even though Canada is the most educated country in the world, its small population of residents cannot cover all the services required. The nation is therefore very friendly to immigrants who are qualified for each job type and will like to settle in Canada and work. Immigration programs like the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is an immigration option that you can easily go for as a foreigner willing to work in Canada.
- Payment Method is not what You’ve been used to
Canada follows a unique payment method whereby salaries are paid twice a month, that is, at the beginning and the middle of the month.
- Fridays are for Casual Wears
Friday is a day most workers in Canada look forward to. Asides from the fact that it marks the end of a working week, most organizations also allow their employees to dress casually to work in jeans and t-shirts or other tops. So, you may have Mondays to Thursdays to appear in corporate wear and then Fridays for something casual. Watch out though, as this strictly depends on what your organization works with.
