Job Bank’s latest market trends, news in Alberta

Source: jobbank.gc.ca

Week of May 25 – May 29, 2015

• The Town of St. Paul has passed a 2015 budget that includes approximately $1.1M in renovations to the Wellness Centre. An additional $400,000 will be used for infrastructure improvements in the town.
• Pembina Pipeline Corp. plans to spend $180M to provide terminalling services for the North West Redwater Partnership refinery. Pembina also announced a $55M pipeline, the Karr Lateral, to connect to the Montney play in Alberta.
• Cenovus Energy and Canadian Natural Resources Limited have evacuated their facilities within the Cold Lake Air Weapons range, due to an out-of-control forest fire in the area. Most of the 1,800 employees at the Cenovus facility have been evacuated.
• Canmore Associated Taxi Brokers is seeking a limit on the number of taxi brokers operating in Canmore to improve services and safety for passengers. The Town of Canmore currently has minimal regulations for the taxi industry through bylaw legislation.
• The Town of Cochrane is planning major road work on five thoroughfares during July and August 2015. The work includes surface improvements, asphalt overlays and concrete repairs.
• The Medicine Hat News is cutting four employees in a reorganization that will shift some of its advertising work overseas starting on August 1, 2015. The paper has reduced its staff by 60 employees in the last decade in an effort to remain competitive.
• The Government of Canada is providing $270,277 to employers throughout the Yellowhead region to hire young Canadians for the summer. The funds are made available through Canada Summer Jobs.
• The Edmonton Police Service is seeking 185 new recruits to replace retiring police officers in 2016. The service is dealing with a lack of applicants and is stepping up its efforts to attract candidates.
• Granify, an Edmonton-based e-commerce conversion platform, has secured a $7M investment from a global venture fund. The new money will expedite development of the company’s products and allow it to attract new customers.
• The Town of Didsbury is moving ahead with a $4M project to build a new firehall. Provincial Steel Buildings, an Airdrie-based firm, is expected to start construction shortly with completion by the first quarter of 2016.
• Trican Well Service is not anticipating any further layoffs in its Canadian workforce following significant reductions in February and March 2015. Trican expects to maintain current staff levels for the remainder of 2015 and into 2016.
• MEG Energy has evacuated all non-essential staff and contractors from their Christina Lake site east of Conklin, due to forest fires burning in the area. The Statoil facility west of Conklin is also on stand-by for evacuation.
• The Coca-Cola Centre, an ice arena in Grande Prairie, is scheduled for $270,000 in renovations from May 16 until June 26, 2015
• The Town of Okotoks is starting to build a new baseball diamond and the town’s first permanent outdoor rink during the summer of 2015, scheduled to be completed in 2016. The $1.2M project includes some associated road work and park amenities.
• The Regional Waste Management Commission of Mountain View, located north of Calgary, plans to dissolve its collection fleet by January 2016, possibly impacting eight employees. The commission is outsourcing collection for residential and commercial waste, and bin hauling services.
• Mountain View County, situated north of Calgary, is moving forward on a plan to construct a $2.1M agricultural services shop. The new shop would replace the existing shop in Didsbury, which was built in the 1950s.
• Go Auto’s Ford, Chrysler, and RV and Marine stores in Peace River have all expanded and moved into new facilities recently. All three locations have also hired additional staff for the service and parts departments.
• OT Sports, a sporting store in Peace River, has recently tripled in size and moved into a new location, with three full-time employees and seven part-time staff
• Hungerford Properties is planning to start construction in 2015 on a commercial project in Sherwood Park, outside of Edmonton. Paragon Business Park is slated to have an office and warehouse building in the first phase of the project scheduled for completion in 2016.
• Strathcona County is in the midst of approximately $18M in construction and infrastructure projects funded for the 2015 summer season
• The Municipal District of Lesser Slave River No. 124 has awarded a $1.6M contract to Martushev Logging for road reconstruction of Poplar Lane
• Construction is scheduled to start in the summer of 2015 on a $4.5M affordable housing development in Calgary. The Calgary Homeless Foundation is leading the project named Aurora on the Park.
• The City of Calgary plans to start construction in 2016 on a $19M bridge to replace the historic Inglewood Bridge. The old bridge, built in 1908, will be demolished following completion of the new span.
• Gilead Sciences, a biotechnology company specializing in pharmaceuticals, is investing $100M to expand its Edmonton campus. The site currently has approximately 300 staff, which is expected to increase to 470 employees by the time the expansion is complete in 2017.
• The Motel 6 in Medicine Hat is undergoing renovations and will be rebranded as Home Inn Express, effective June 1, 2015. The renovations include a redesigned lobby with technology upgrades and a games room.
• Canada Summer Jobs is providing $368,397 in funding to support 98 young Canadians in summer jobs in the Medicine Hat Region. The funding is spread among sixty-eight organizations.
• The Wainwright Fire Rescue department is looking for volunteer firefighters to add to its crew members. The service is seeking firefighters to replace departing members to bolster its on-call roster.
• To celebrate the 150th anniversary of Confederation, the federal government has announced $150M funding through the community infrastructure program, which $46.2M will be available for towns and cities of the four western provinces.