N.L. optimistic about future of workforce despite barriers, high unemployment

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NL

Workforce leaders gathered for a jobs forum successful St. John’s connected Wednesday, hosted by the provincial government.

'We already are the envy of the world,' said Premier John Hogan

Jenna Head · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 12, 2025 4:30 AM EDT | Last Updated: June 12

Man successful  suit

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier John Hogan delivered closing remarks astatine a jobs forum successful St. John's connected Wednesday. (Patrick Butler/CBC)

Newfoundland and Labrador had the highest unemployment complaint successful Canada successful April 2025 — 9.8 per cent — but the provincial authorities is not discouraged with megaprojects similar Bay du Nord and the Churchill Falls MOU on the horizon. 

Premier John Hogan spoke with workforce leaders astatine a jobs forum successful St. John's connected Wednesday.

He said Newfoundland and Labrador is starring the state connected projects deemed "nation building" by Prime Minister Mark Carney.

"To beryllium honorable with you, we already are the envy of the world," Hogan said.

According to the national government, nation-building projects would "make a important publication to Canada's prosperity" and "advance nationalist security, economical security, defence information and nationalist autonomy done the accrued accumulation of vigor and goods, and the improved question of goods, services and radical passim Canada."

Examples include highways, railways, ports, airports, pipelines, captious minerals, mines, atomic facilities and electrical transmission projects.

Hogan said Newfoundland and Labrador is presently up of different provinces, aft proceeding their pitches during a archetypal ministers' gathering successful Saskatchewan past week.

"When the media asked the premiers and the premier curate questions after we were done our meeting, they said 'Well who's going to physique the pipeline?' And Premier Smith of Alberta said 'Well we don't cognize that yet,'" Hogan said. "'Who's going to physique the transmission lines successful Nova Scotia that you're talking about,' and they said 'Well, we don't cognize that yet either.'"

In contrast, Hogan said, Newfoundland and Labrador's plans are nary longer concepts, but manufacture professionals are much acrophobic astir workforce capableness and infrastructure. 

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Amanda McCallum, enforcement manager of Mining Industry N.L., and Khalid Al-Hariri, acting manager of employment services with the Association for New Canadians, outlined immoderate of their concerns astir infrastructure and worker enactment astatine the province's occupation forum connected Wednesday. (Danny Arsenault/CBC)

For example, Mining Industry N.L. enforcement manager Amanda McCallum told reporters they volition request 1,000 workers to assistance with operation oregon excavation operations connected the Baie Verte Peninsula.

She's not definite wherever each the workers volition stay.

"The Baie Verte Peninsula, successful the precise adjacent term, is surely a unit point," McCallum said. "When you're talking astir having to summation a workforce, there's lodging requirements, there's societal supports, there's services."

McCallum said Mining Industry N.L. went into the jobs forum with the intent to beryllium heard.

"It's not conscionable jobs, it's ensuring that radical person a nice, harmless assemblage to enactment in, that work-life balance," she said. 

The Association for New Canadians besides voiced its concerns as newcomers often look further barriers erstwhile trying to participate the workforce.

"The main situation would beryllium language. [The] language obstruction is simply a communal situation for newcomers who travel to the province," said Khalid Al-Hariri, the ANC's acting manager of employment services. 

Jobs, Immigration and Growth Minister Gerry Byrne hosted the forum connected Wednesday.

He said improving the province's workforce is simply a priority.

"There's a commonality with attracting a workforce, processing skills wrong the workforce, and creating that highly, highly dignified workplace. That's a extremity for america all," Byrne said.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jenna Head is simply a writer moving with the CBC bureau successful St. John's. She tin beryllium reached by email astatine [email protected].

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