Job Seekers and Available Jobs – Are They Aligned?

When job seekers go online to find open positions through job boards, are they seeing an accurate representation of the actual jobs out there? The Workforce Planning Board of York region conducted a survey to find out if the two are aligned.
When it comes finding employment for job seekers, a lot of effort goes into encouraging individuals to reach higher levels of education, develop vocational skills and acquire the kinds of soft skills that are necessary in today’s workplace. But how well do these job seekers align with the jobs available in the marketplace? It’s often difficult to assess, particularly at a local level. Job seekers, educators and career counsellors want to know what jobs are available, with as much detail as possible. One way to assess this is online. What do online job postings reveal about York Region’s job market?
The Workforce Planning Board of York Region and Bradford, West Gwillimbury, a community-based, non profit funed bye the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills development conducted the some research that delves into online job boards and job postings to determine:
1. How representative might the online job board data be of all local job openings?
2. How do the online job board openings compare in terms of the level of education required to fill that job?
3. How do the local job openings match the education profile of local residents?
4. What else does this data tell us about the job openings posted online?
5. How do these job postings match up with the career aspirations of local youth?
Click here to view/download the report.