Turning tables, the Atlantic Provinces try to lure their own back

It's tit for tat when it comes to recruiting skilled workers. In September, we wrote about a newspaper supplement called Move West that had scandalized Atlantic Canada by trying to lure its skilled workforce to move to Fort McMurray and places like that in the booming west.

Now, according to a story on cbc.ca, playing to the homesickness of Maritimers who may have found that Alberta is not all they had hoped, a magazine-style supplement called Come Home to a Career in Atlantic Canada is inserted in several urban Alberta newspapers this week. The 40-page supplement,includes ads from health authorities in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, the Atlantic Lottery Corp., Research in Motion in Halifax, and the governments of Nova Scotia and P.E.I.

"Are you feeling that coming home for vacation is not long enough to enjoy your family and friends? Do you miss the ocean views and the smell of New Brunswick forests and trails?" reads an ad from NB Power.

J.D. Irving, another advertiser, asks whether Atlantic-born Albertans are homesick, and advertises jobs back home as offering quality of life, closeness to family and friends, and affordable housing. "Your current equity can go a long way," the advertisement reads.

Jean Nadeau, general manager of CareerBeacon.com, which published the insert, said the ads and related website will help anyone who is thinking of moving back.

"If you go to our website today, there are probably around 2,000 opportunities in the region, and it is clearly helpful to plan instead of coming back with [just] one or two opportunities, and not being sure if it's worth it. I think there is a lot of advantages." Nadeau said there was a compelling reason to publish the insert now.

"Christmas is coming, and many Atlantic Canadians living in Alberta will visit their family, and they might have an opportunity to set up meetings with potential employers, and maybe start preparing their return if they ever want to do so."