Why there is a labour shortage on P.E.I., and yet so many unemployed
CBC
This is part one of a two-part series on the labour shortage on P.E.I. Part 2 will be published Sunday morning.
The number of job vacancies on P.E.I. soared in the second quarter of this year, while the unemployment rate climbed into double digits for the first time since last summer.
It's a frustrating situation for P.E.I. businesses, particularly in the hospitality sector. A surprising number of tourists arrived on the Island when the provincial border reopened in July, but restaurants found themselves having to reduce hours and hotels were shuttering rooms due to a lack of staff.
It left a lot of Islanders wondering how it was possible that so many businesses could be short workers with so many unemployed.
It's a question that has been raised on the campaign trail.
Most federal candidates on P.EI. have agreed that the federal government needed to act and act quickly when the economy was shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic.
But there is disagreement about how to proceed with government support as the economy recovers. Conservative candidates have argued CRB has become a disincentive to work.
