Moving industry hit with labour shortage ahead of July 1 Moving Day
Posted June 28, 2022 4:07 pm.
Last Updated June 28, 2022 7:02 pm.
As Moving Day across Quebec approaches on July 1, what’s usually a hectic time for moving companies now brings an added challenge.
“The industry as a whole is suffering greatly from a serious labour shortage and a very slow return of what used to be our regular labour force,” said Paul Filgiano, the president and CEO of Meldrum the Mover, based in Montreal’s NDG.
The lack of staff – something being felt in many sectors – is limiting their services during this busy season.
“(There’s) simply just not as many crews out on the road and that’s really what it boils down to, the labour force just isn’t there,” Filgiano said. “And what labor force is there, is not always properly experienced, properly trained, and it does take a while to train staff to do what we do. So if they’re not there, we just can’t take on the additional moves.”
#WATCH: “The labour force just isn’t there,” says Paul Filgiano, president of Meldrum the Mover, of the lack of employees that returned to the industry amid the pandemic. He says many are feeling the effects of it and he has limited his services.
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Since the pandemic hit, some of the staff haven’t made a full return.
“We are obviously a very seasonal business, so we rely heavily on our returning workforce every season,” said Filgiano. “With the government subsidies, that workforce was very slow to come back and it’s caused some very significant challenges.”
#WATCH: The labour shortage is being felt across many industries including moving companies. Meldrum the Mover, based out of NDG, has been coping with the shortage but says it’s an added challenge during a busy time.
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Crew members have noticed the lack of seasonal workers.
“Where they go? I don’t know. I guess they relocate or some people went to delivery like Amazon and stuff like that,” said Eric Shannon, crew chief for Meldrum the Mover. “I guess that the moving business is not interesting for them right now.”
This only creates headaches for some of the crews working on the ground.
“We had guys that were trained, now they probably went on doing better things, and now the new labour that’s coming in, we’ve got to retrain them. Sometimes it’s a little bit harder,” Shannon said. “We don’t always have the guys who have the capability of doing this job because it takes a lot of stamina, a lot of hard work and some guys are not able to do this.”
Shannon, who has worked in the industry for 25 years – eight of those at Meldrum the Mover – says he was able to hold on to his team throughout the pandemic.
“I’m one of the lucky ones, but there are other crews where it’s more complicated, more difficult and more challenging,” he said.
Add to the mix: the rising costs involved that comes with transportation.
“As much as we try not to, obviously that does trickle its way through to the consumer,” said Filgiano. “And yes, people will find that things are more expensive, as they are with groceries, fuel and everything else.”
But as we approach Moving Day, some say the industry is slowly getting back on track, despite the challenges.
“It just seems like one major hurdle after the next,” Filgiano said. “And it’s been that way for the past few years. I hate to admit it, but I think we’re kind of getting used to dealing with major issues.”
