The Business Council of Canada (BCC) welcomed the federal government’s announcement, saying that employers across the country are struggling to fill jobs.

The BCC said in a media statement that it wants to see the number of immigrants admitted under the economic category increase from just over half to 65 percent of the total.

“Every job that is not filled represents one less person contributing to Canada’s economic growth and one less person paying taxes to support Canada’s social infrastructure,” said BCC president and CEO Goldy Hyder in a media statement.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said it will fall short of the BCC’s request as it sets its target for economic immigrants at 60 per cent of the annual total by 2025.

The BCC says that a recent survey of its members found that 67 per cent of its members had cancelled or delayed major projects because they could not find workers. The group also said that 30 per cent of members reported that they were forced to relocate work outside of Canada.