Topic 2: Maneuvering in an uncertain labour market
What is the labour market?
To maneuver in this labour market, we and our clients and students need to have foundational knowledge in what the labour market is and its structure.
Labour
Think of the word, LABOUR. Record all the words that you think of when you hear this word.
Supply and demand
In simple terms, the labour market is an arena where demand for labour (employers) and the supply of labour (worker) meet.
We are all members of labour force. The labour market is ours – our career development is affected by it, and we contribute to it. Therefore, in the same way, as we’d need to research the local farmer’s market before setting up a stall, if we’re going to function effectively in today’s labour market, we need to know what impacts it, its current conditions and how it works.
The structure of the labour market
This model highlights seven key forces in our society that act on and influence the labour market.
These are the GREEN section at the outer rim of the diagram.
7 key forces
Demographics
Democratic are key factor in shaping Canada’s labor market and the supply of workers. factors such as birth rate, age composition of the population, Workforce participation rates and rates of immigration all are demographic forces influencing labor market trends.
For example if Canada’s birth rate is below replacement level, and the population is aging this can create pressure under Service delivery infrastructure such as pension plans and Social Services for greying population. Likewise if immigrants are the largest source of labor market supply in Canada we should see more immigrant resettlement services and government policies addressing immigration.
Training and education
For companies to keep faced with the rapidly changing economy businesses and Industry agree that it is a vitally important for Education and Training programs to provide workers with the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes. students these days need to know that, although a good education can prepare them for employment, lifelong learning is an important part of any career. the need for skill workers puts a demand on educational institutions, but there is usually a time lag of 3 to 4 years between the increase in the demand and the ability of the training program to meet this demand.
An example here could be that foreign qualifications assessment and plar are cumbersome and time consuming for many professions, in Long Lags between immigrant arrival to Canada and their eligibility to work in their profession. as a result, we’re seeing increased demand for fqa and plar services and increase the pressure on professions to reshape their qualifications and qualify immigrants faster.
Political Economic
These refer to Trends created by political policies in flukes in the price of goods and services for example, an increase in oil and gas cost can result in more interest in Alternative forms of transportation (e.g. biking and public transport) and power sources (e.g. solar and wind). increases in oil and gas prices can also Drive government policies that help, for example, up citizens save on home eating costs and encourage more uptake of public transportation options.
Social
A social trend is based on increased public awareness, usually via mass media, resulting in a change in opinions, values and – therefore – behaviors. marketing and public awareness efforts can influence the demand for specific standards and qualities in goods and services. the labor market will then respond by demanding standards to be meat to provide web buyers one.
For example, duplicate awareness regarding obesity in children as lead to Trends such as eating locally produced foods and the eliminations of vast food from school cafeteria and lending machines.
Occupational Industries structure
There as always been a natural division of labor in society based on which jobs have the highest status, which have the highest or lowest pay, which require extensive training, and which are similar enough to be grouped. The Noc (National Occupational classification system) is Canada’s formal occupational classification system. Such classification systems allow for the collection of Occupational data through the census, the labor force survey and other data. these data can be used to make a compassion node projections identify training needs and perform occupational research.
They can help workers identify careers path by learning about occupational mobility and skill levels. an example here might be the recognition of midwifery as an occupation. this recognition as resulted in more home birth and the availability of formal Midwifery training programs. https://noc.esdc.gc.ca/
Technology
We are all aware of how technology has changed over the years. what changes come to mind? smartphones, service apps (e.g.) Airbnb, Uber), online shopping, AI, and machine learning. changing technology can be included in any discussions of the other six components of the labour market. For example, the way we use technology to be able to work from home and to connect with the rest of the world links with social and economic Trends such as organizational restructuring and Global competition. Technology also has added an important impact on occupational structure because it has caused the disappearance of certain occupations as well as the emerge of new ones. Education and Training are, of course, involved as new skills and upgrading prison skills are required to keep up with the technology.
An example of the influence of this Force could be the increased availability of cheap technology (e.g. cell phones, computers) which would then allow for greater accessibility to the technology for more users and developers from low economic backgrounds. This trend could democratize take allowing for citizens developers to program, collect and analyze data to support the development of solutions to problems at the local level.
Environment
We are increasingly aware of the impact that the environment has on the labour market. For example, climate change in our management of natural resources affect the supply and demand of products and services across communities and many sectors. moratoriums on fishing, increased flooding and other natural disaster have occurred and often have far reaching impacts on related policies such as constructions public Safety and insurance.
Trends
The words found in dark sections of the model are examples of factor and Trends associated with each Force. Trends in one force can interact with factors/trends in other force and create a push and pull dynamic in the labor market. For example, think about how consumer demand is impacted by having more people at retirement age.
US
Core to the model, the blue bulls-eye at the center, Is Us. At the beginning of this sections of the course, we mentioned that the labor market is often seen as something out there but, in reality, we are at the center of it. The labor market is ours! The arrows pointing in and out of the center of the model remind us that we are both influenced by influencers of the labor market.
Information access
to know how the labor market works and how it impacts us, we need to access LMI. this is key – both to developing our own careers and in our role as cdp’s, helping clients/ students make career sense of, and apply LMI in their career development. if our clients and we are to function effectively in today’s labor market, we need to know what impacts it, its current conditions and how it works.
Model reflection
Take some time to reflect on the model. Does it make sense? Does anything stand out for you? Is there anything missing?
Foundational knowledge
The purpose of the model is to ground you in the understanding of the labor market and how it functions. it provides a foundation for accessing and understanding LMI. The model is an important reminder that there are multiple influences and labor market. events we can see all around us ( and others which may be harder to spot) are continuously influencing supply and demand, the composition of the labor force, unemployment rates, growth sectors and opportunity.
