Pay and housing continues to top the list of what motivates job seekers in the Bow Valley.
That’s according to the Bow Valley Job Resource Centre’s fall labour market review, which shows Banff and Canmore businesses offering higher wages and subsidized housing had better luck hiring and retaining employees this summer.
Michel Dufresne, director of the Job Resource Centre, said compensation and quality of housing is by far the most important driver for entry-level job seekers, adding this is an expensive place to live and affordable housing is in short supply.
“Employers that offered better than average wages and staff housing enjoyed a distinct advantage over those that did not,” he said.
Other motivating factors were opportunities for training and development, reputation of employers, perks such as discounts on meals, health and dental benefits and, to a much lesser extent, location and flexible schedules.
“When you think of people working in the tech sector, and they do studies on what makes people happy, they talk about sensible hours, flexible work environment, ergonomic desks; but that’s for people who are making $100,000 a year,” said Dufresne.
“When you’re talking about the entry level world of work, those things are not important. If someone offers $13 and someone offers $15 an hour, $15 is more important. You’re going to go with the $2.”
After three years of flat wages, the average starting wage in the Bow Valley was up eight per cent to $16.01 per hour, according to the Bow Valley Job Resource Centre.
The fall labour market review indicates this increase reflects, in part, the nine per cent increase to minimum wage that took effect October 2016. Minimum wage goes up again Oct. 1 to $13.60 per hour.
Dufresne said most employers in Banff and Canmore in general, pay ahead of the minimum wage line.
“But 25 per cent of employers still offer minimum wage, so some employers had to bump up wages as they didn’t have any choice, and I think that’s where we saw the numbers in the average increase in wages,” he said.
“I also think other employers bumped minimum wage employees up, then had to bump up the $15 guys because they now want $16 or $17 because they’ve been there longer.”
According to the labour market review, the average wage for cooks, dishwashers and kitchen staff went from $14.68 to $15.22, while the average wage for grocery, retail, hairstyling, esthetics and marketing went from $13.29 to $15.37.
The average wage for trades and labourers – apprentices, hotel maintenance and landscapers, for example – went from $17.52 in 2016 to $19.05 this year. Average pay for hotel front desk agents, night auditors, bellmen, hotel security went from $14.13 to $15.13.
Statistics are based on job orders placed with the Job Resource Centre in Banff and Canmore between Feb. 1 and July 31.
