The labor market shift driven by artificial intelligence is no longer theoretical, and Energy Job Shop is seeing its effects emerge unevenly across the economy. While office and digital roles face mounting pressure from automation, skilled trade jobs tied to infrastructure, utilities, and industrial maintenance are experiencing accelerating demand across Canada and the United States.
While much of the AI conversation focuses on automation and job loss, real-world infrastructure, energy, and skilled trades roles are proving far more resilient.
As a Canadian-based skilled trades and energy employment platform serving job seekers and employers across North America, Energy Job Shop is seeing this shift unfold in real time through job seeker behavior and employer demand. Data from the platform shows sustained interest in trades such as pipefitter jobs, millwright jobs, welding roles, and industrial operators, even as digital and office roles soften.
Over the past six months, Energy Job Shop has recorded approximately 10x growth in job seeker traffic, driven largely by increased searches and applications for fifo jobs, camp jobs, and per diem jobs. These insights are based on aggregated internal platform analytics, including job seeker search activity, application volume, and employer demand signals observed across North American markets.
Many of these opportunities involve travel-based energy jobs tied to established hubs such as Alaska, North Dakota, and Colorado, alongside growing demand for jobs in Texas and mining and exploration regions in Nevada. The platform is also tracking rising interest in jobs in Alberta, jobs in Colorado, and jobs in New Mexico as industrial investment expands across multiple regions.
“Most of the AI job loss narrative is centered on digital and office work. What we’re seeing in skilled trades is the opposite. Demand is increasing, not slowing. The constraint isn’t jobs. It’s how fast people can be trained and put to work,” said Andrew Forster, Co-Founder of Energy Job Shop.
In addition to experienced tradespeople, the platform is seeing growing interest from individuals outside the skilled trades sector who are actively exploring oilfield jobs and other high-paying EJS jobs that often include rotational schedules, camp accommodations, and per diem compensation. Searches for turnaround jobs, shutdown jobs, and other project-based roles are increasing as workers look for opportunities with clear pathways into long-cycle industries.
Demand for skilled trades in Canada remains particularly strong, reflecting persistent labor needs across infrastructure, utilities, and industrial maintenance. These sectors continue to require regulated, safety-critical expertise that cannot be replaced by automation at scale.
Energy Job Shop attributes this trend to the structural realities of physical work. While AI is reshaping how jobs are matched, routed, and discovered, it cannot replace hands-on skilled trades in complex industrial environments. Long-cycle industries such as energy production and maintenance continue to require human expertise in ways that digital roles often do not.
The company emphasizes that the larger labor market risk is not mass unemployment, but skills mismatch and delayed retraining. As job seeker behavior shifts earlier than government reporting or headline data reflects, platforms surfacing real-time demand signals are becoming increasingly important for both workers and employers.
To support faster adaptation, Energy Job Shop provides training and exploration tools through EJS-University, helping job seekers better understand where demand is rising and how they can transition into resilient, skilled trade jobs.
The company also publishes the free to use Skilled Trades Newsletter, offering ongoing insights into emerging labor market trends and new opportunities across North America’s energy and infrastructure workforce.
More information about current skilled trades hiring trends and available roles can be found at www.energyjobshop.com.
About Energy Job Shop
Energy Job Shop is a Canadian-based employment platform connecting skilled trades professionals with energy, infrastructure, and industrial employers across North America. The platform emphasizes job-seeker-first access to verified opportunities while using aggregated demand signals to surface real-time labor market trends.
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Media Contact
Andrew Forster
Co-Founder, Energy Job Shop
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.energyjobshop.com
newsroom: news.38digitalmarket.com
