According to the 2018 EmployerOne Survey, 79% of manufacturing related businesses are expecting to hire over the next 12 months and the area will have to deliver a workforce that is willing to take on these roles. However, many people still believe that all manufacturing is dark, dirty, dangerous and that jobs are poorly paid.

88% of manufacturers who completed our 2017 EmployerOne Survey indicated that they had separations - 72% of these were quits (see chart below). Our 2018 EmployerOne Survey shows that 75% of manufacturers also had positions that were hard to fill sighting not enough applicants, lack of motivation, lack of qualifications, lack of work experience and lack of technical skills as the top 5 reasons for these hiring difficulties. This survey also showed that 83% of employers rated the availability of skilled workers as fair to poor (compared to 17% rated at good to excellent).

The Dufferin Workforce Development Committee continues its collaborative approach to support, grow and advocate for a community of great employees and great businesses. Since late 2016 the committee has been taking steps to overcome issues of employee recruitment and retainment and has worked in unison with the area labour market plan and the newly created economic development strategies of both the Town of Orangeville and Dufferin County. Already this group has supported the Town of Orangeville’s organization of job fairs that have been attended by over 1,000 job seekers. They have also worked with the Workforce Planning Board of Waterloo Wellington Dufferin on the gathering of data through their EmployerOne Survey. This survey allows businesses to share important information about hiring challenges and specific workforce needs. The 2018 survey represented 2,223 employees in Dufferin County.