November Job Report in Canada – Employment was little changed

Following two months of notable gains, employment was little changed in November. The unemployment rate increased 0.1 percentage points to 6.6%.

Compared with November 2013, employment increased by 146,000 (+0.8%), with part-time and full-time work up 1.9% and 0.6% respectively. Over the same period, the total number of hours worked was little changed (+0.1%).

In the six months to November, employment grew by an average of 21,300 per month, compared with an average of 3,000 per month for December 2013 to May 2014.

Chart 1 Employment

Provincially, employment declined in Ontario and Saskatchewan, while it increased in Quebec as well as Newfoundland and Labrador.

Fewer men aged 55 and over were employed in November, while there was little change for men and women in the other major age groups.

Employment decreased in retail and wholesale trade as well as professional, scientific and technical services. At the same time, there were more people employed in natural resources and agriculture.

In November, the number of private sector employees declined, while the number of public sector and self-employed workers edged up.

Chart 2 Unemployment rate

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