Wages did not keep up with inflation in 2022 in Quebec
In 2022, the number of vacancies in Quebec reached a peak since 2015, notes a report by the Institute of Statistics.
The number of jobs in Quebec in 2022 exceeded the pre-pandemic level, but the number of vacancies reached a record. And if wages grew in 2022, their increase did not keep up with the rise in inflation, reveals the Institut de la statistique du Québec in its latest report on the labor market. Here are five highlights.
Average hourly earnings increased 5.8% from 2021 to 2022, or $1.69, to $30.96 $. At the same time, the consumer price index increased by 6.7% for the whole of 2022.
The average hourly rate for women was $29.29, up 5.9%, compared to $32.54 for men, which represented a jump of 5.6%.
In 2022, the number of vacancies increased by 25%, to 241,700. A high since 2015, the report notes. In the last year before the pandemic, 2019, the number of vacancies was 130,700. The report targets four industries particularly affected by the labor shortage: health care and social assistance, accommodation and food services – hard hit by the pandemic –, manufacturing and retail trade.
The unemployment rate was 4.3% in 2022 , its lowest level since 1976. The unemployment rate was 6.1% in 2021. The number of unemployed people fell by 80,200 in 2022, a drop of 28.7%.
Immigrants occupy an increasingly important place in the Quebec labor market. In 2022, 859,000 people with an immigrant background were employed in Quebec, a record since data on immigration status were compiled (2006). Nearly one person in five employed in the province is now an immigrant.
There is a higher unemployment rate among immigrants (5 .8%) than in native people (3.8%). The employment rate remains higher among people of immigrant origin, at 65.9% (60.5% for natives). This disparity is essentially explained by a higher employment rate among immigrants aged 55 and over.
The number of jobs in Quebec increased by 129,700 in 2022 to to settle at 4,403,100, an increase of 3% compared to 2021. This increase was more marked among women (+67,600; +3.3%) than among men (+62,100; +2.8 %). The volume of jobs in 2022 is about 72,000 higher than that observed in 2019, before the pandemic.
