Irving says it will hire nearly 600 people on P.E.I. over the next 3 years

J.D. Irving Ltd. is looking to hire up to 594 people on P.E.I. over the next three years to replace upcoming retirements.

As part of the company's hiring forecast, it's looking to hire up to 10,400 people between 2018-2020, with a chunk of those jobs coming to P.E.I.

Of those 594 jobs, 347 will be reserved for Cavendish Farms while the rest is for Kent Building Supplies.

Seventy-three of the jobs at Kent Building Supplies will be for students.

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"On the Island, I would say that the bulk of the hiring is related primarily to retirements," said Mary Keith, vice president of communications for the company.

"We have a cohort of employees who we anticipate will be retiring this year,in addition to folks who would be working in our retail group."

Fewest hires among Atlantic provinces

Keith said the jobs at Cavendish Farms will primarily bewithin the plant itself, related to engineering, logistics,finance, shipping and supply.

Prince Edward Island represents the fewest number of hires by J.D. Irving among the Atlantic provinces, the largest being New Brunswick at 5,101 jobs.

Here's a breakdown of Irving's hiring forecast:

• New Brunswick, 5,101
• Nova Scotia, 2,167
• Newfoundland and Labrador, 959
• United States, 1,036
• Prince Edward Island, 594
• Ontario, 418
• Quebec, 142
• Alberta, 49
• British Columbia, 3

Keith said the largest growth spike she's seen is with Kent Building Supples in terms of the net new jobs on P.E.I.

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