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October 28, 2026

In-Demand Jobs in a Slow Market: Where Hiring Is Still Growing in Canada and the US

Overall hiring has cooled, but demand is still concentrated in health care, skilled trades, manufacturing and the electrical work behind data centres. Here is what the latest Canadian vacancy data and US projections show, which roles stand out, how hard each is to enter, and a networking tip for breaking into a new field.

Demand hasn't disappeared, it has narrowed

When national job numbers soften, it is easy to conclude that nobody is hiring. The data says something more specific. Canada lost jobs in August and September and US payroll growth has nearly stalled, as we covered in Monday's job market outlook. Yet underneath those headlines, a handful of occupations still show openings growing, unusually high vacancy rates, or strong projected growth.

This article looks at where that demand sits, what it takes to get in, and which signals are current versus forecast. One distinction to keep in mind throughout: vacancies and postings measure what employers are trying to fill, and projections estimate what might happen over a decade. Neither is a guarantee of hires.

Health care: still the deepest pool of openings, but cooling in Canada

Health care remains the largest single source of demand on both sides of the border, with an important caveat for Canada.

Statistics Canada's profile of the health workforce, released October 19, found just over 1.7 million people working in health occupations in 2025, up 4.9% in a year. Health vacancies averaged 67,900 in 2025, down from a 2023 peak of 90,700 but still nearly three times the 2016 level. The health vacancy rate was 4.5%, compared with 2.7% across all occupations.

The shortage is sharpest for licensed practical nurses, whose vacancy rate was 12.3% in 2025. Registered nurses were at 5.0%, and nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates at 4.7%.

The caveat: demand is easing. Canada's health care and social assistance sector lost 23,000 jobs in September, according to the Labour Force Survey, and second-quarter vacancies for health occupations were down 7.9% from a year earlier, HR Director reported from StatCan's Job Vacancy and Wage Survey. Public sector employment also fell by 70,000 in September. Our read is that tighter public budgets, not a lack of patients, explain much of the pullback, but that is an interpretation, not a StatCan finding.

In the US, the Bureau of Labor Statistics' new 2025–2035 projections put health care and social assistance at about 2.2 million added jobs, roughly 37% of all projected job growth, Fortune reported. Nurse practitioners are the fastest-growing occupation in the projections (+41%), and home health and personal care aides are expected to add about 847,300 jobs, according to Axios.

Barrier to entry: high for licensed roles. Practical nursing diplomas typically take about two years, and RN and NP roles require degrees and licensing. Personal support and aide roles have shorter training paths but lower pay.

Skilled trades and manufacturing: vacancies rising in Canada

Some of the clearest current growth in Canadian openings is outside offices and hospitals. In the second quarter of 2026, vacancies in manufacturing-related occupations were up 19.2% from a year earlier, and vacancies for trades, transport and equipment operators rose 7.7%, according to StatCan survey figures. Monthly payroll data for July showed the same pattern: manufacturing vacancies rose 22.1% year over year, HR Director reported.

Geography matters here. Alberta had 73,100 vacancies in July, its highest since September 2024, while Ontario and Quebec declined. That lines up with Alberta's job gains in the September Labour Force Survey.

Another useful detail: vacancies for roles requiring a high school education or less rose 2.4% year over year in the second quarter, while those requiring a bachelor's degree or more fell 5.9%. For career changers without a degree, that is a meaningful opening.

Barrier to entry: moderate. Many manufacturing and labourer roles hire at entry level. Red Seal trades require apprenticeships of roughly three to five years, but you earn while training.

Electrical work, power and data centres

The single fastest-growing US sector in the BLS projections is utilities, at 9.8%, with nearly all the growth expected in electric power generation, transmission and distribution, Fortune reported. Solar electric power generation is projected to grow 153% and wind 62%, though from small bases.

Data centres are adding to that pull. North American data centre vacancy has held at about 1% for three straight years, which means capacity is being built as fast as it is leased, Fierce Network reported, citing JLL. The same article cites BLS projections of roughly 81,000 electrician openings a year and McKinsey estimates of large gaps in electricians, construction labourers and supervisors through 2030. It puts data centre technician pay between US$45,000 and US$145,000.

Our Monday outlook noted that Indeed postings tied to data centres rose 20% in three months, and electrical engineers saw some of the fastest advertised pay growth.

Barrier to entry: varies widely. Electricians need an apprenticeship and licence. Data centre technician roles often accept candidates with IT support, military, or facilities maintenance backgrounds plus certifications.

Tech: selective, not dead

Tech is the most mixed picture. Software development postings in the US remain well below 2020 levels. But in Canada, second-quarter vacancies in natural and applied sciences occupations rose 4.5% from the previous quarter, led by software developers and user support technicians. And BLS projects data scientists to grow 34.6% over the decade.

The takeaway is that tech hiring has narrowed toward specific skills, especially data, AI and infrastructure, rather than broad generalist roles.

Where demand is shrinking

It helps to know where not to bet your next year of training. BLS projects office and administrative support jobs to shrink by about 752,100 (-4%) over the decade, the largest decline of any major occupational group. In Canada, second-quarter vacancies in education, law, social, community and government services were down 13.3% from a year earlier.

At a glance

| Field | Current signal | Main evidence | Entry barrier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Practical and registered nursing (Canada) | High vacancy rates, easing | LPN vacancy rate 12.3% (2025) | Diploma or degree plus licence |
| Health care (US) | Largest projected growth | 2.2M jobs projected, 2025–35 | Varies: short courses to graduate degrees |
| Manufacturing and trades (Canada) | Vacancies rising | +19.2% and +7.7% y/y, Q2 2026 | Entry level to apprenticeship |
| Electrical, power, data centres | Strong demand, mostly US | Utilities fastest-growing sector projection | Apprenticeship or certifications |
| Software, data and AI | Selective | Canadian sciences vacancies +4.5% q/q | Degree or demonstrable skills |
| Office and admin support | Shrinking | -752,100 jobs projected (US) | Low, but fewer openings |

What job seekers can do now

  1. Match your target to the data, not the hype. Pick one growing field above where your existing experience overlaps, even partly.
  2. Check the local numbers. Canada's Job Bank publishes outlooks by occupation and region. Alberta and the trades look stronger than the national average right now.
  3. Look for paid training paths. Apprenticeships, employer-sponsored certifications and hospital-run aide programs reduce the cost of switching.
  4. Talk to people already doing the work. Job postings tell you what employers want. People in the role tell you what actually gets someone hired. That is today's tip.

Tip #3: Ask for 15 minutes of insight, not a job

The problem: Career changers often send cold messages that ask for a referral or a job. Strangers rarely say yes, and the message gets ignored.

What to do instead: Ask someone already in the role for a short informational conversation. Keep the request specific, time-boxed and easy to accept. Ask what skills mattered most when they were hired, not whether they can hire you.

Example: You're an office coordinator exploring data centre operations.

  • Before: "Hi, I'm looking for a job in data centres. Do you know of any openings?"
  • After: "Hi Priya, I'm moving from facilities coordination into data centre operations. I saw you joined as a technician last year. Could I ask you two questions over a 15-minute call about which certifications actually mattered when you were hired?"

No connections yet? Try alumni from your school, trade association events, or apprenticeship information sessions.

Today's action: Find two people working in one target field on LinkedIn or through your alumni network, and send each a two-question request.

The takeaway

Hiring has slowed, but it has not slowed evenly. Health care still has the deepest pool of openings, Canadian trades and manufacturing are adding vacancies, and power and data centre work is pulling in electrical skills. If you're choosing where to aim next, follow the vacancies, weigh the training time honestly, and talk to someone already doing the job before you commit.

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