Job prospects Medical Laboratory Assistant in New Brunswick

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "medical laboratory assistant" in New Brunswick or across Canada.

Job opportunities in New Brunswick

These outlooks were updated on December 11, 2024.

Prospects over the next 3 years

The employment outlook will be good for Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations (NOC 33101) in New Brunswick for the 2024-2026 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment growth will lead to several new positions.
• Not many positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

• Population growth and an aging population will support demand for these positions, going forward, as this will generate an increasing need for medical laboratory tests.
• Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations workers require completion of a college certificate program in medical laboratory science.
• In New Brunswick, Medical Laboratory Assistants and related technical occupations are not required to be certified. However, they can be certified via a voluntary process set up by the Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science (CSMLS). Certification may also be an asset when seeking employment.
• Medical Laboratory Assistants and related technical occupations work in laboratory environments where they may spend a considerable amount of time standing or sitting, performing tasks that may be repetitive. They must observe safety precautions to reduce the risk of exposure to infectious body fluids, dangerous chemicals or hazardous radiation.

Here are some key facts about Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations in New Brunswick:

• Approximately 600 people work in this occupation.
• Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Hospitals (NAICS 622): 77%
  • Ambulatory health care services (NAICS 621): 20%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 85% compared to 84% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 15% compared to 16% for all occupations
• 78% of medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations work all year, while 23% work only part of the year, compared to 62% and 38% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 46 weeks compared to 42 weeks for all occupations.
• Less than 5% of medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations are self-employed compared to an average of 10% for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: 8% compared to 52% for all occupations
  • Women: 92% compared to 48% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: n/a
  • high school diploma or equivalent: 9% compared to 30% for all occupations
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 15% compared to 12% for all occupations
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: 64% compared to 23% for all occupations
  • bachelor's degree: 10% compared to 16% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: n/a

Breakdown by region

Explore job prospects in New Brunswick by economic region.

Source Labour Market Information | Prospects Methodology