The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a once-in-a-lifetime disruption to the world economy. Countless businesses have been forced to close their doors and millions of Canadians have lost their jobs, had their hours reduced, or been temporarily laid off during the crisis. The economy is beginning to recover and there are increasing opportunities as critical jobs are experiencing a surge in hiring.
If you’re looking for work right now, these 10 jobs and their skills are in demand:
- Online developers: COVID-19 has people spending more time online than ever. Developers keep all the digital platforms we rely on running smoothly and businesses are using online sales to rebuild their in-person business. Developers increase e-commerce capabilities, debug and troubleshoot existing platforms, build enterprise tools, work on big projects that were sidelined prior to the pandemic including website redesigns, software upgrades and building new features. Experienced developers in all specialties are needed to bring them to life.
- Retail clerks and cashiers: Essential retail stores continue to increase sales. Grocery stores, pharmacies, drug stores, bulk stores, discount stores and other essential businesses work 24/7 to secure inventory and ensure their employees and shoppers stay safe. Stores take every precaution to protect their workers, installing Plexiglas barriers, providing masks and gloves, and encouraging touchless payment methods such as debit or credit cards. As a customer-facing role, cashiers and retail clerks are working multiple shifts to meet demand.
- Healthcare workers: Hospitals, clinics, long-term care homes, schools and other healthcare facilities are increasing their staffing to meet new demands. Facilities are increasing staff to meet the new levels of support required. The increase in healthcare support jobs including healthcare administrators and other support staff who provide administrative functions such as enrolling patients, updating any records, cleaning, food services and ordering supplies.
- Transport truck/delivery drivers: Surges in sales require retailers to constantly refresh their inventory to keep product on their shelves. Truck drivers are the primary way that stores receive deliveries. Normal operations may have stores receiving 1-2 deliveries/wk. Increases in sales have high traffic stores receiving multiple deliveries daily. This demand continues all the way down the supply chain. Individuals with a commercial driver’s license are in demand right now, as supply chains across the country struggle to keep inventory flowing.
- Call centre representatives: Customer service phone lines are ringing off the hook. Online channels such as live chat and email support are also in high demand. Customers have questions, need assistance cancelling or suspending their services, placing orders, rescheduling travel plans with airlines, hotels and other providers in the hospitality industry, inquiring about item availability, shipping, or other policies. Call centre staff can also work remotely making them an attractive alternative for organizations responding to a surge in customer requests.
- Retail supervisors: Supermarkets and other essential retailers are experiencing record sales as customers continue to stock up on groceries, cleaning supplies, and other necessities. Retailers have responded by ramping up hiring and need of experienced supervisors to oversee day-to-day operations and keep their stores functioning. Supervisors organize employee schedules and ensure adequate coverage, support recruitment, supply chain, and health and safety initiatives, deal with customer complaints, and assist with any other issues that customer-facing staff can’t deal with on their own. Experienced supervisors are critical to operations running smoothly.
- Administrative assistants: Work for multiple departments within companies including roles in legal, health and safety, marketing, customer service, HR and accounting – which are just some of the departments that have become more in demand. Administrative assistants provide general support to colleagues in areas including word processing, formatting or filing documents, answering or redirecting phone calls and providing other general office support. Many of these positions are being offered as remote work opportunities.
- Inventory control: Supply chains are under immense pressure to keep up with demand. Inventory control specialists work in a store or warehouse and are in charge of keeping track of existing stock and scaling purchasing up or down in response to demand. Production slowdowns result in critical goods and services in short supply and a competent inventory management team is a must for retailers and wholesalers. Experienced inventory control professionals who have experience managing a supply chain and building relationships with distributors are critical to keep essential goods flowing right now.
- Custodians and cleaners: Canadian public health officials have released new, strict health and safety guidelines that businesses must follow to keep workers and customers safe. Frequent cleaning and sanitizing to reduce the risk of contamination and infection which has resulted in grocery stores, warehouses, schools, offices, manufacturing facilities and other businesses to increase their cleaning staff to comply with the regulation.
- Warehouse workers: Warehouse workers in commercial distribution centres and direct-to-consumer warehouses are working around the clock to ensure that inventory is moving and reaching stores and customers. Online sales have increased dramatically as consumers who would typically purchase their groceries or other supplies in person are continuing to use home delivery services. Warehouse workers process orders and ensure they reach customers in a timely manner. Pickers and packers are in especially high demand, as are other warehouse positions.
As a way to help, Job Skills has online workshops that will assist you in your current job search situation. Watch for the dates and times to register for our online workshops as well as lots of great links and resources to assist you!
If you haven’t connected with an Employment Consultant at Job Skills NOW is the time to get that one-on-one support you need as you move through the new way of working. Call Job Skills toll free at 1-866-592-6278 to connect to one of Job Skill’s experts.
