Employment Outlook

The employment outlook will be good for Chefs (62200) in Prince Edward Island for the 2022-2024 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment growth will lead to several new positions.
• A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a moderate number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

The prospect for employment in this occupation is positive over the forecast period.

Employers rely on the Temporary Foreign Worker program to fill temporary jobs/vacancies in this occupation when qualified Canadian labour is not available.

Job opportunities for chefs are mainly driven by the level of consumer spending and tourism activities in food services including restaurants, and to a lesser extent, in accommodation services such as hotels.  

Following a strong post-pandemic recovery in 2022, the Island’s tourism sector experienced another solid season in 2023 with considerable gains in tourist traffic (particularly by way of the Confederation Bridge and air). Furthermore, the Island welcomed a record number of cruise ships in 2023 which generated significant economic spin-offs in the sector. Tourism activity is expected to be favourable over the forecast period, however, risk factors such as elevated prices and high interest rates may temper growth.

However a key challenge for operators was staffing shortages, particularly for red seal chefs and sous-chefs

Employment prospects tend to be better in population centres where the concentration of accommodation and food establishments is greater. Job openings can be seasonal particularly in rural areas where resorts and tourist facilities may only open for part of the year. Workers with experience preparing ethnic cuisines may have improved prospects given the growing cultural diversity of the province. 

Chefs interested in establishing their own business may wish to explore appropriate investment opportunities.

Here are some key facts about Chefs in Prince Edward Island:

• Approximately 250 people work in this occupation.
• Chefs mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Food services and drinking places (NAICS 722): 64%
  • Accommodation services (NAICS 721): 11%
  • Hospitals (NAICS 622): 10%
  • Nursing and residential care facilities (NAICS 623): 8%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 83% compared to 84% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 17% compared to 16% for all occupations
• 38% of chefs work all year, while 62% work only part of the year, compared to 59% and 41% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 36 weeks compared to 41 weeks for all occupations.
• 14% of chefs are self-employed compared to an average of 13% for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: 62% compared to 51% for all occupations
  • Women: 38% compared to 49% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: less than 5% compared to 11% for all occupations
  • high school diploma or equivalent: 27% compared to 28% for all occupations
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 18% compared to 11% for all occupations
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor’s: 38% compared to 25% for all occupations
  • bachelor’s degree: 7% compared to 17% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: 5% compared to 8% for all occupations

Source: Job Bank

Prevailing Wages