With new industrial businesses about to become operational, Sundre is set for an employment explosion. Developing a quality workforce and recruiting working-aged people is going to be essential to ensure the sustained success of our area economy.
As of December 2018, Alberta’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.4 per cent, down from seven per cent in December 2017. In Central Alberta’s Red Deer region, the unemployment rate was only 4.4 per cent, the best in the entire province. Calgary’s employment region, which extends to include Sundre, is at seven per cent, tied for worst in the province; there are no statistics for Sundre itself.
Located almost perfectly equidistant between the two cities, Sundre’s unemployment rate is likely somewhere in between Red Deer’s and Calgary’s. Let us estimate an unemployment rate of six per cent for our community based on regional trends, the provincial average and the fact the Sundre area has a dynamic economy.
At six per cent unemployment, there are a good number of people who still need work. But not all jobs can be done by just anybody. Most higher paying jobs require skilled workers. Skills are gained through training and education. If there is an inadequate supply of skilled workers to contribute to production, then companies providing products and services will not be able to fulfil their obligations, and will thus be unable to grow and prosper.
Therefore, a quality workforce is one of the most important factors relevant to economic development since it is essential to business operations. Adding complexity to this context, with a low unemployment rate, workers have options to choose from. So, another important factor to economic development is a geographic area’s quality of living — including its built environment, amenities and culture — because when faced with options, entrepreneurs and workers will choose to invest and live where they want to be.
Representing a new industry for Sundre, the construction of Phase 1 of Candre Cannabis’s new Calyptra facility is well underway. The 43,335-square-foot operation is state of the art and will initially employ about 40 people. If sanctioned, Phase 2 will see Candre expand it to about 500,000 square feet within about two years, with employment surpassing 300 workers. The growth of Candre’s operations in Sundre represents a case in point of the constraints faced by expanding businesses. If Candre is unable to hire the trained local workforce needed to produce its product, its production capacity could be impeded and affect operations. Although still a couple of years off, Candre is already developing alternate strategies to meet its pending workforce requirements. Its business is but one that will be facing this challenge.
Workforce growth will also place pressure on other businesses to retain employees. Although this represents a major boon to the Sundre and area labour force, for companies in the Sundre area, it also means they must immediately begin planning on training and retaining their workforce over the next few short years.
The Town of Sundre is preparing for this pending growth. This includes through infrastructure investments, new place-building initiatives to beautify the community, working with new residential housing developers for future projects, and attracting people to Sundre through promotional destination marketing campaigns. The municipality is also developing new workforce training opportunities.
This year, a special new partnership has begun between the Town of Sundre and Campus Alberta Central (CAC), the joint agency of Red Deer College (RDC) and Olds College. CAC has made a multi-year commitment to have RDC provide post-secondary training and courses right here in town at the Sundre Community Centre. This represents a major opportunity for individuals to upgrade their training, and for businesses to increase the skills of their workers at an affordable cost. It also represents the first step toward a potential permanent post-secondary presence.
The point is clear: Sundre is on the cusp of substantial growth, and workforce attraction and training will be key to the sustained prosperity of Sundre during this growth period. Programs are underway to help meet this end. But businesses also need to prepare and contribute. Whether through beautification and the development of amenities to attract workers; taking advantage of partnerships to train workers; or residential developments to house working families, all stakeholders must be prepared to work together to attract, train and retain the skilled working-aged people who will allow our community to prosper.
Visit www.abworkforceinfo.com for provincial workforce information on recruiting, training and retaining employees. For information on training your employees through the new CAC partnership with the Town of Sundre, contact the department of economic development at 403-638-3551.
Jon Allan is the Town of Sundre's economic development officer.
