http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/273055

Staff Reporter

Job security and substantial pay are the top incentives being offered to people attending an Alberta job fair at the Toronto Congress Centre today and tomorrow.

The fair runs today until 9 p.m. and tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. It's being put on by Calgary-based advertising company Workwest.ca. The goal of the fair, the fifth of its kind in Southern Ontario in the last 12 months, is to get people from Ontario to go west.

A booming economy because of successful oilsands projects has put a strain on the labour market in the province. Employers at the fair are willing to offer high incentives, relative to what's available in Ontario, to fill jobs.

"Obviously, there is a lot of driver interest because there are a lot of transportation companies here," said Ray Edwardson, president of Workwest.ca who spent the first part of the day strolling through the crowd.

Those companies include Greyhound Canada and local Calgary transit. Drivers are also needed to work in waste management and construction.

Other employers at the fair include the Calgary Police, Calgary Fire department, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Military. There are also representatives from companies like Brinks looking for drivers and guards.

While the majority of the work on offer is for skilled labour, several companies are also looking to fill a gap in human resources positions as well as in areas like accounting.

Why come to southern Ontario to find people to go west?

"It comes down to mathematics," said Edwardson. "We are primarily trying to go to areas where there are large concentrations," of people, like urban centers.

He called the turnout at the centre today better than average and said he expected about 5,000 people to stream through the doors by tonight. More people are expected tomorrow.

The Toronto Congress Centre is located at 650 Dixon Rd., just north of Highway 401 on the east side.

For more information and a list of exhibitors go to http://www.workwest.ca