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Environmental ScienceTechnician

In this section you’ll find:

General information on environmental technology and employees in the field.
More specific details about the job market for environmental technologists in Ontario.
Information about the job market for environmental technologists in Ontario.

Fast facts about environmental technology :

Environmental technology is expected to grow at a rate of 1% between 2006 and 2010, which matches the Canadian average.
About 80% of environmental practitioners are working full-time.
Small companies of 50 employees or under are the fastest-growing segment and make up almost three quarters of the environmental technology industry.
At last count, 530,414, environmental workers were employed across Canada, which is about three per cent of Canada’s workforce.
89% per cent of surveyed environmental practitioners under 35 years old completed an environmentally-related program.
62 % of IT Technicians attended college, university or a post-graduate program. Of these, the largest group attended community college.
It took newcomers an average of a year and a half to find field-related work or about four months longer than non-immigrants.
37% of immigrants felt that a limited social network was the largest barrier they had to cope with when looking for work.
In Canada, the top five key sectors to employ environmental practitioners are:
- Public administration
- Mining, gas and oil extraction
- Administration and support, waste management and remediation
- Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
- Manufacturing

What are employers saying?

Employers questioned in a focus group felt that writing, communication, and other “soft skills” are often as important as technical skills. One of the reasons suggested for these skills is that workers in environmental technology often have to translate technical information into common language for clients.
20% of employers surveyed said they had recruited technologists.

According a 2006 report called Characteristics of Canadian Environmental Practitioners , the main problems foreign-trained environmental practitioners reported were:

Getting foreign education and/or job experience recognized in Canada—23% said they had difficulty.
Language barriers were an issue for one tenth of immigrants surveyed.
17% felt they didn’t have enough information about the environmental technology industry.
Limited social networks and contacts—for 37 per cent of immigrants surveyed, this was a concern.
Feedback from both immigrants and employers suggest social and cultural skills are at least as important as technical skills in the industry.

The Job Market

What the research shows about some of the jobs in Environmental Technology:

Of all the provinces, Ontario employs the largest number of environmental workers— 43% or 225,342 people.
A recent study of environmental practitioners found 72% were somewhat or very satisfied with their jobs.

CERTIFICATION

Find out more about OACETT (Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologists) and what you need to get certified by clicking here.

For information on Certification by CECAB (the Canadian Environmental Certification Approvals Board), click here
Over half of employers questioned in a 2004 focus group said they found new employees through personal referrals.

OACETT Certified Pay Scale for Environmental Technology:

A 2004 survey of environmental technologists and technicians certified by the Ontario Association of Certified Technicians and Technologists (OACETT) found on average respondents earned:

Environmental Technologist: $ 59, 200
Environmental Technician: $69, 500
Environmental Associate (non-OACETT certified) $51, 600