The Labor Market Of Canada Is On The Rise

04 Nov 2013

The jobless rate of Canada has come down to a 5-year-low, demonstrating a solid job creation in a few sectors and – in the case of September – fewer youngsters hunting for jobs.

On average, the labor market of Canada has added around 12,000 jobs a month this year, which may not be a tremendous pace, but, was enough to decrease the unemployment rate to 6.9%. This is the lowest it has been since December, 2008. In 4 of the past 6 months, employment has increased with gains on both the services and goods side of the economy.

Backed by fresh evidence from payrolls and GDP reports, a few economists see signs of the economy getting stronger by the end of the summer.

An economist at CIBC World Markets, Emanuella Enenajor said finally, there are signs of Canada’s jobs market being on the mend and expects to see in this Friday’s labor force survey, an addition of 20,000 new jobs in the last month.

There are a number of shifts behind the plodding growth rate. Here are 3 primary trends in the jobs market, based on data from Statscan’s payrolls report and the labor force survey:

1. Wages are no threat to inflation: In September, the average hourly wages of permanent employees were 1.8% more than last year. Weekly earnings haven’t increased above the 3% mark in the last half- year, suggesting companies are still holding a line on costs. Administrative jobs saw the largest increase.
2. The construction business has enjoyed a jobs boom: In the past year, Construction has seen the highest employment rises, reflecting both the activity on the commercial side and a still-strong housing market. Jobs in the Real-estate market are growing too, registering one of the quickest year-over-year growth rates.
3. Alberta is, no surprise, still hot: Alberta has seen the largest employment rise in Canada, at 3.7%. Its rate of unemployment is the lowest, tied with Saskatchewan, at 4.3%. Bank of Montreal noted the previous week that the wage gap between Atlantic Canada and Alberta has reached around $6 an hour, the highest on record.