Unemployment rate remains unchanged in Canada at 5% in February
22,000 jobs were created in February across the country, according to Statistics Canada.
Employees at the General Motors plant, located in Ingersoll, Ontario, assemble electric vehicles. (File photo)
The job market is still going strong in Canada with an unemployment rate of 5% in February, according to Statistics Canada's Labor Force Survey. After adding 150,000 jobs in January, the country's economy added 22,000 jobs in February.
Unemployment rate remains near record low of 4.9% in June and July 2022.
Employment has been on an upward trend since September 2022 and 348,000 (+1.8%) more people were employed in Canada in February 2023 compared to August 2022, reads the press release. x27;federal agency.
While employment among people aged 55 to 64 rose by 25,000 (+0.7%) in February, continuing a strong upward trend that began in August 2022, it has changed little among adults (25-54) and youth (15-24).
Employment increased in health care and social assistance (+0.6%), public administration (+0.9%) and utilities (+5%).< /p>
It was in the Atlantic provinces that employment grew the most, in New Brunswick (+ 1.3%), on Land Newfoundland and Labrador (+1.6%) and Prince Edward Island (+2%), with the exception of Nova Scotia which experienced a decrease (- 0.9%). Manitoba also saw an increase (+0.7%).
In Quebec, the unemployment rate was measured at 4.1% in February, up slightly by 0.2 percentage points. The agency adds that the unemployment rate in the Quebec metropolitan area was just 1.9%, the lowest rate of any census metropolitan area in Canada. /p>
In Ontario, the unemployment rate remained at 5.1% in February. Employment rose by 57,000 (+1.6%) in February, for an unemployment rate of 5.6%.
In New Brunswick, employment rose 1.3%, or 5,100, and the unemployment rate was 6.3%, down 1.2 percentage points.< /p>
In Prince Edward Island, employment rose 2%, or 1,700, and the unemployment rate was 7.3 % in February.
Nova Scotia was the only province to post a decline in employment in February, of 4,700, or 0.9%. The unemployment rate rose 0.7 percentage points to 5.7%.
Across all age groups, female employment increased by 214,000 from August 2022 to February 2023, and they were responsible for 61% of the growth of employment during this period.
More women between the ages of 55 and 64 are employed, it is noted. They are 30,000 more (+ 1.9%) to have a job in February in this age group and this is an increase of 1.2 percentage points compared to the previous year. previous high reached in January (59.6%).
More than 6 in 10 women (60.8%) in this age group were employed during the months, the highest proportion on record.
Employment among men aged 55 to 64 has remained stable, and their employment rate stood at 70.3%.
Also among those aged 55 to 64, retirement as a main activity was down 0.7 percentage points to 18% in the last year ending in February 2023.
Retirement decisions can be influenced by labor market conditions, financial considerations, and many other factors, and can affect labor market trends for groups approaching retirement. x27;retirement age, the statement read
Average hourly earnings rose 5.4% ($1.69 to $33.16) year-over-year month in February, compared to the 4.5% ($1.42) increase recorded in January (unadjusted data).
Nevertheless, the increase in the average wage is below the consumer price index which stood at 5.9% in January after reaching 6.3% in December 2022.
Total hours worked increased 0.6% in February, up 1.4% from a year earlier.
