Canada – A lost of 7 000 jobs last month and little overall employment growth in Canada since August 2013

Employment was little changed in February, and the unemployment rate remained at 7.0%. There has been little overall employment growth in Canada since August 2013. (JMM Editor: Indeed, a lost of 7 000 jobs last month)

Compared with 12 months earlier, employment increased by 95,000 (+0.5%) and the unemployment rate was unchanged. Over the same period, the number of hours worked rose 0.7%.

Chart 1 Employment

Chart 2 Unemployment rate

Provincial employment

In Quebec, the number of people working fell by 26,000 in February, pushing the unemployment rate up 0.3 percentage points to 7.8%. This employment decline follows a slight upward trend that began in September 2013.

In British Columbia, 10,000 fewer people were employed in February. The unemployment rate for this province was 6.4%, unchanged from a month earlier, as fewer people participated in the labour market. Compared with 12 months earlier, employment in British Columbia was essentially unchanged.

Employment in Alberta rose by 19,000 in February, pushing the unemployment rate down 0.3 percentage points to 4.3%. On a year-over-year basis, employment in this province grew by 3.8% or 82,000, accounting for the lion’s share of the national growth.

In February, employment increased by 2,900 in Nova Scotia. The unemployment rate was little changed at 8.9% compared with the previous month, as more people entered the labour market. Compared with February 2013, employment in the province was little changed.

Although employment in Saskatchewan was little changed in February, the unemployment rate fell 0.4 percentage points to 3.9%, as fewer people searched for work. On a year-over-year basis, employment in the province increased 0.9% or 5,200.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at The Daily — Labour Force Survey, February 2014.

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