With job vacancy rates on P.E.I. climbing, employers are welcoming the news that immigrants are becoming a bigger factor in the province's workforce.

Census figures released last week show the proportion of immigrants and non-permanent residents in the Island workforce almost doubled between 2016 and 2021, rising from 6.9 to 13.3 per cent. Despite that growing contribution, the job vacancy rate is still rising. At 6.4 per cent it is tied with Quebec for the second highest in the country.

That vacancy rate is even higher in the retail sector, said Jim Cormier, Atlantic director for the Retail Council of Canada.

"Labour issues within the retail sector have been a challenge for a number of years," said Cormier.

"It's ultimately important for the retail sector to be looking at ways to attract Islanders to work in the Island retail sector, be they people that have just arrived in the province or people that have been there for years."

Todd MacEwen, at Immigrant & Refugee Services Association P.E.I., said there have been changes in the programs that are bringing immigrants into Atlantic Canada.

While previous programs were focused on entrepreneurs, the Atlantic Immigration Program is employer-driven, and designed to fill permanent labour shortages and skills gaps.

MacEwen said employers in the province's biggest industries — like agriculture, fisheries and tourism — are bringing in employees through the Temporary Foreign Worker program, and then working hard to retain them.

"What we are seeing is that a lot of the larger employers … are going the extra mile to create an atmosphere where these workers' efforts are being appreciated," he said.

"If employers take those extra steps to create an environment that is welcoming to people from different races, different cultures, different countries, that creates happier and more satisfied employees who are more likely to stay longer term."

MacEwen said other changes, like the temporary lifting of the cap on off-campus employment for international students, have also had an impact on workforce participation rates for newcomers.

"You'll have a lot of younger people who are going through Holland College and UPEI able to access employment opportunities easier where they're not tampered by the amount of hours they can work," he said.

"I think again that will help with long-term retention in that you do have this young educated generation coming up."