The effects of the economic downturn and then COVID-19 have taken a toll as the Drumheller-Stettler region lead the province with the highest unemployment rate.
According to the most recent labour statistics, November saw an 11.4 per cent unemployment rate in the region, down from 12.6 per cent in October, but still the highest in the province. November of 2019 showed a 3.7 per cent unemployment rate for the region. Alberta’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is sitting at 11.1 per cent.
Sagan Gordon, program coordinator at MH Enterprises says while they don’t have unemployment numbers strictly for Drumheller, the regional numbers are reflective of what is happening in Drumheller. Oil and gas have been on a decline since 2016, and many more sectors have felt the brunt of COVID -19.
“We haven’t broken it down by the industries. I think it is a combination of several things, the tourism sector, hospitality is down, and all of those entry-level jobs people would be working aren’t there as well as the seasonal labour jobs,” she said.
“I think it is across the board, I don’t think any one industry has been less impacted than others.”
The slowdown in oil and gas has made an impact on counties and their ability to provide employment.
“With the counties, there are quite a few equipment operator jobs, they just don’t have the same amount of resources, probably a ripple effect of the oil and gas industry,” she said. “When Trident Energy left Starland County, that was a huge tax base. So I think some of the municipalities tax base is gone because the oil and gas companies have had a tough year, so it has resulted in less seasonal labour positions as well.”
She says there are still some positions out there, some in professional sectors.
“A lot of professional services - right now The Town of Drumheller is looking for some pretty high-level professional roles, the economic development manager, and a social media coordinator,” she said. Gordon adds the Commissionaires have also had a big hiring spree in the Drumheller and Stettler area, bringing on about 10 positions.
She says even when the market is slow, it is a good time to make preparations to re-enter the job market.
“It might be slow, but everybody needs time to polish up resumes, work through re-skilling, getting some different training in place, and developing a game plan and strategy in place for when things do open up,” said Gordon. “We are seeing a lot of workers over the age of 55 who are previous oilfield employees looking for a complete career change. That has been a huge base of our clientele.”
“There are jobs out there and it is important to have someone in your court to navigate through this current situation. It is easy to have the assumption there are no jobs, but there are jobs. It just takes a little patience and a little bit of coaching on how to find them, and then you can successfully connect.”