Express Entry’s Targeted Occupations : How Many Trades Workers Does Canada Really Need?
Express Entry’s Targeted Occupations : How Many Trades Workers Does Canada Really Need? Trades are one of five occupational sectors prioritized by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for Express Entry category-based draws in 2023. The Canadian federal government established Express Entry category-based drawings earlier in 2023 as a strategy of leveraging immigration to solve labour market shortfalls in five key job categories*. *Healthcare, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), transportation, trades, and agriculture/agri-food are among the 2023 Express Entry categories. To assist important job sectors with some of the country’s worst labour market needs, IRCC established category-based Express Entry selection drawings earlier this year. The first-ever category-based draw for Express Entry took place on June 28 and – as of the time of writing – there have been four more category-based draws for these five occupational groups since then. The emph