- Over the past five years, total employment in the manufacturing sector increased by about 288,000 workers (or 15%). However, this employment growth is not even across all age groups. The number of workers under 45 years increased by 7%, while the number of workers 45 year and over increased by 35%.
- 255,000 workers – 11% of the sector’s workforce – are aged 55 and older.
- Given a median retirement age for the sector of 61 years, the age distribution implies that a large contingent of these 255,000 workers will leave the labour force over the next five years. Over the next 15-year period, employers may be looking at replacing over 400,000 workers.
- The level of formal educational attainment among the manufacturing workforce is increasing. Even over the relatively short time span of 1997 to 2003, the proportion of the workforce with a post-secondary certificate, diploma or degree has increased from 42% to 47%.
- Canada’s reliance on immigration for labour force growth is evident within the manufacturing sector. Census data show that the labour force within Manufacturing Industries increased by 125,335 between 1991 and 2001, with recent immigrants representing 166% of the sector’s net labour force growth
This workforce profile of the manufacturing sector provides an overview of current workforce demographics and lists a number of areas where action might be taken to address the critical human resource issues of retention recruitment and skills development. The profile draws upon two primary data sources, the 2003 Labour Force Survey and the 2001 Census of Canada.
