Alberta is rapidly recovering from the downturn it faced as a result of weakened world-wide energy prices. This rebound means increased opportunities for the province's embattled labour force but there's a catch. Since few things are rebuilt exactly as they once were after a catastrophe, the recovering economy means employment opportunities are coming back but many of these new opportunities will require change, transition and relocation.

The reason for this is, as the job market in wild rose country returns, particularly in energy-sensitive areas such as fire-ravaged Fort McMurray, Leduc/Nisku, Acheson and other energy sector service regions, those jobs will often be filled by someone new, someone who doesn't necessarily already live near the workplace being advertised. This means a sudden spike in professional relocation services such as those offered by Leduc Moving and Storage who has seen more than one downturn in their 75 year history.

The reason for this relocation escalation is because many of the workers who had been laid off during the downturn have moved back to their home provinces, found other work or have simply dropped out of the job market. Statistics Canada reports an average of almost 600 individuals per month had moved out of Alberta throughout most of 2016. Many of the suddenly unemployed were forced to flee the province leaving their possessions behind to be sold at auction by the mortgage lender or, for the luckier ones, through garage sales or "buy, sell and swap" sites. Others tried to ship their household goods with opportunistic discount carriers. These sometimes disreputable movers began popping up after the crash with alarming frequency; trying to take advantage of a desperate market with super low prices and quality to match.

Now, however, with new vacancies in emerging skilled positions on the rise, those individuals who remained in Alberta can now fill the posts left vacant by those who couldn't wait out the recovery. What this means for the Alberta moving industry is a sudden spike in demand for reputable moving services. The employees refilling these lucrative positions in the oil patch have the means to hire accredited moving professionals, rather than single-truck moving companies with few workers and no track record. (For an example of what can happen with this sort of company, check out this CTV Edmonton report from last December.)

It looks like, as usual, the professional moving industry is the bellwether for the provincial economy. We should all rejoice at the rebound.