On balance, the Labour Force Survey results released by Statistics Canada in January 2011 for December - the last month of 2010 – offered good news. Employment increased, the new jobs created were in the private sector, and a relatively high percentage of them were full-time jobs. Hiring demand levels that we (VicinityJobs.com) monitor were relatively high compared to previous months as well – staying at about 10% above last year’s levels.

But December’s report comes on the heels of bleak news from the past couple month. Overall, the job market recovery remains disappointingly slow and unstable, especially given the magnitude of the collapse that we experienced in late 2008: The job market must grow at much faster pace if it is to recoup the momentum it lost in the past couple of years. Yet we are registering hiring demand levels (measured by number of job postings published online) at about one third below their pre-recession level, and the jobs that are being advertised are different from those that were lost. (more…)

On the face of it, the headline of the Statistics Canada labour market report for November sounded great: Unemployment dropped 0.3 percentage points to 7.6 % and is now at its lowest level since January 2009. But a closer look reveals that there is less substance behind this number than meets the eye. And those who were hoping that the numbers from South of the border would look better were bitterly disappointed as well.
(more…)

On November 5th, 2010, Statistics Canada published the October result of its monthly labour market survey. It seems to indicate that the job market recovery has almost stalled, at a time of the year that is normally be characterized by steady job creation. The Vicinity Jobs hiring demand numbers from October also show that hiring pulled down sharply from its peak a month ago. What is unusual this time around is that other economic indicators – such as stock price indices – point to an overall economic recovery.

(more…)

Statistics Canada has just released the results of its labour market survey for the month of August. The report did not contain any surprises and in line with expectations of various job market players and with hiring demand reports provided by Vicinity Jobs (including our forecasts discussed in our blog in recent months). (more…)

According to the results from a recent Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, Canadian employers are expecting a consistent hiring climate for Q4 2010. In the course of the next three months, the Manufacturing-Durables industry sector expect to see an active hiring pace — the most optimistic forecast in the past 10 years.
(more…)

On the face of it, the July unemployment numbers released by Statistics Canada on August 6, 2010 look quite disappointing: Unemployment increased across Canada, growing from 7.9% to 8%. The only bright spot really seemed to be Western Canada (whose economy is strongly dependant on the resource industries and on the commodity market trends). Unemployment in BC dipped 0.3 percentage points from 7.8% to 7.5%. However, hiring demand that that VicinityJobs.com gathers suggests that the worsening is unlikely to persist – at least in the Greater Toronto Area. (more…)

Statistics Canada released its monthly labour market survey report  this morning (July 10th) for the month of June, and overall, it is fairly good news (the original report is found here: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/100709/dq100709a-eng.htm). Canada’s economy created 93,000 jobs – significantly more than generally expected. The trend was lead by Ontario, whereas employment in British Columbia remained unchanged.

(more…)

Statistics Canada published the results of its monthly labour market survey on Friday, June 4th. It indicates that even though Canada’s unemployment rate did not change in May, unemployment in Ontario and British Columbia grew. (more…)

Statistics Canada released its latest labour force survey on Friday (read the full survey here: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/100507/dq100507a-eng.htm ), and it seems to be all good news. Employment grew in April at a rate not seen since 2002. In fact, the rate of employment gains in April was comparable to the magnitude of monthly employment losses that we were seeing in the early months of the recession.
(more…)

Statistics Canada released its regular monthly Labour Force Survey report today (October 9, 2009) and it contains good news: Employment in Canada increased in September by 31,000 jobs, and unemployment dropped for the first time since the fall of last year. The increase marked the second month in a row in which employment increased in Canada. Unemployment now stands at 8.4% in Canada, at 9.2% in Ontario, and at 7.4% in British Columbia. (more…)