Job prospects Crop Farm Labourer - Harvesting near Charlottetown (PE)

Over the past few years (2021-2023), there was a major labour shortage for Harvesting labourers near Charlottetown (PE). There were far more job openings than workers available to fill them in this occupation.

Source Labour Market Information | Recent Trends Assessment Methodology

The employment outlook will be very good for Harvesting labourers (NOC 85101) in Prince Edward Island for the 2023-2025 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment growth will lead to a moderate number of new positions.
• A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a moderate number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

Harvesting labourers is a seasonal, physically demanding occupation with low entry requirements; therefore high employee turnover will be a major source of future job openings. Employers rely on the Temporary Foreign Worker program to fill temporary jobs/vacancies in this occupation when qualified Canadian labour is not available. 

The supply of labourers has decreased on the Island over the years and employers continue to experience difficulty finding workers during peak periods. The trend towards more specialized farms is affecting the demand for harvesting labourers in the province. The increased use of advanced farming technology, such as farms with renewable energy-producing systems, will continue to create a need for those with higher skills and knowledge levels.

Here are some key facts about Harvesting labourers in Prince Edward Island:

• Approximately 450 people work in this occupation.
• Harvesting labourers mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Agriculture (NAICS 111, 112, 1151, 1152): more than 95%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 89% compared to 84% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 11% compared to 16% for all occupations
• 25% of harvesting labourers work all year, while 75% work only part of the year, compared to 59% and 41% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 31 weeks compared to 41 weeks for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: 71% compared to 51% for all occupations
  • Women: 28% compared to 49% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: 35% compared to 11% for all occupations
  • high school diploma or equivalent: 44% compared to 28% for all occupations
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 6% compared to 11% for all occupations
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: 9% compared to 25% for all occupations
  • bachelor's degree: less than 5% compared to 17% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: n/a

Source Labour Market Information | Prospects Methodology