Labor shortages and immigration: The case of the Canadian agriculture sector

Reliable access to labor is an ongoing key concern for many employers, in particular for those in regions. As an attempt to help mitigate the effects of labor shortages, immigration has been deployed as a key strategy, but most immigrants are concentrated in large cities. A sector that represents an interesting case in point is the food production sector, which includes primary agriculture and food processing. We use a rich longitudinal micro-database for the years 2001-2013 from the Canadian Employer-Employee Dynamic Database to identify the factors that have an impact on the recruitment and retention of Canadian-born and immigrant workers in the primary agriculture and food processing sectors. In particular, in response to the efforts to explore permanent residence pathways, whether or not immigrants with previous Canadian experience are more likely to stay in the sectors after entering remains a key question for policymakers that we investigate [EconLit Citations: J15, J18, J21, J63, Q10, Q12].

Automated summary

By using a rich longitudinal micro-database from the Canadian Employer-Employee Dynamic Database, factors influencing the recruitment and retention of Canadian-born and immigrant workers in the primary agriculture and food processing sectors are identified. Policymakers are investigating whether immigrants with previous Canadian experience are more likely to stay in these sectors after entering.