Canadian Employment Climbs by 35,000 Jobs in June
Alex Carrick -- July 24, 2007
After two relatively quiet months in April and May, total employment in Canada picked up again in June 2007, with an increase of 35,000 jobs. This was approximately double the long-term monthly average. Through the first half of this year, 197,000 new jobs have been created in Canada and the year-over-year increase has been 336,000. The long-term annual average increase is 200,000. Clearly the current strength in job creation is both an indication of overall strength in the economy and one of the main drivers propelling the economy forward.
Some noteworthy regional developments include the following. The four western provinces continue to have the lowest unemployment rates in the country, all below 5.0%. In all of the eastern provinces, the jobless rate is 6.5% or higher. Alberta has the nation’s lowest unemployment rate (3.8%) and has also accounted for the greatest year-over-year increase in jobs (4.6%).
However, there are some interesting stories in eastern Canada as well. In absolute terms, Québec (+89,000) has provided the greatest year-over-year increase in jobs among all the provinces (even higher than Alberta’s +86,000). This has pushed Québec’s unemployment rate down to 6.9%, a 33-year low. The largest job gains in Québec have come in accommodation/food services, retail/wholesale trade and construction, while manufacturing employment has been in decline.
New Brunswick has also achieved a high year-over-year increase in employment (+2.4%). The strength in New Brunswick has come in the information sector. The province has had considerable success in attracting call centre and data processing work to the region, partly due to the bilingual nature of much of its work force. New Brunswick also has large construction projects underway (liquefied natural gas and nuclear power refurbishing) that are providing employment.
Ontario’s employment growth has been anemic (+0.9% year over year), due mainly to job losses in manufacturing. This has a significant impact on the total Canada figure, as Ontario accounts for nearly 40% of all jobs in the country.
On the wage front, average hourly wages rose by 3.2% in Canada in the second quarter of 2007 compared with the same three months in 2006. By way of comparison, the general inflation rate in the country −the year-over-year increase in the Consumer Price Index − has been 2.2% in each of April, May and June.
After two relatively quiet months in April and May, total employment in Canada picked up again in June 2007, with an increase of 35,000 jobs. This was approximately double the long-term monthly average. Through the first half of this year, 197,000 new jobs have been created in Canada and the year-over-year increase has been 336,000. The long-term annual average increase is 200,000. Clearly the current strength in job creation is both an indication of overall strength in the economy and one of the main drivers propelling the economy forward.
Some noteworthy regional developments include the following. The four western provinces continue to have the lowest unemployment rates in the country, all below 5.0%. In all of the eastern provinces, the jobless rate is 6.5% or higher. Alberta has the nation’s lowest unemployment rate (3.8%) and has also accounted for the greatest year-over-year increase in jobs (4.6%).
However, there are some interesting stories in eastern Canada as well. In absolute terms, Québec (+89,000) has provided the greatest year-over-year increase in jobs among all the provinces (even higher than Alberta’s +86,000). This has pushed Québec’s unemployment rate down to 6.9%, a 33-year low. The largest job gains in Québec have come in accommodation/food services, retail/wholesale trade and construction, while manufacturing employment has been in decline.
New Brunswick has also achieved a high year-over-year increase in employment (+2.4%). The strength in New Brunswick has come in the information sector. The province has had considerable success in attracting call centre and data processing work to the region, partly due to the bilingual nature of much of its work force. New Brunswick also has large construction projects underway (liquefied natural gas and nuclear power refurbishing) that are providing employment.
Ontario’s employment growth has been anemic (+0.9% year over year), due mainly to job losses in manufacturing. This has a significant impact on the total Canada figure, as Ontario accounts for nearly 40% of all jobs in the country.
On the wage front, average hourly wages rose by 3.2% in Canada in the second quarter of 2007 compared with the same three months in 2006. By way of comparison, the general inflation rate in the country −the year-over-year increase in the Consumer Price Index − has been 2.2% in each of April, May and June.
Labels: Canada, employment
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