Employment up in Ontario: Stats Can

In Ontario, employment edged up by 16,000 in December 2011, bringing growth to 1.4 per cent (91,000) over the previous year, according to Statistics Canada.

The unemployment rate in the province was 7.7 per cent, down 0.2 percentage points from a month earlier.

On the national front, following two months of declines, employment rose slightly in December, up 18,000. The unemployment rate edged up to7.5 per cent as more people participated in the labour market.

Over the past 12 months, employment growth totalled 1.2 per cent (199,000), with nearly all of the gains in the first half of the year.

The employment growth of 1.2 per cent from December 2010 to December 2011 followed an increase of 1.8 per cent between December 2009 and December 2010.

In December, an increase of 43,000 in part-time work was partially offset by a decline of 26,000 in full-time employment. Compared with 12 months earlier, the number of part-time workers changed very little, while full-time employment was up 1.5 per cent (more than 208,000).

Over the same period, the total number of hours worked increased by 1.4 per cent.

Among the provinces, employment increased in British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in December. In contrast, employment declined in Quebec, while there was little change in the other provinces.

There were notable employment gains in manufacturing for the month, while there were declines in utilities. All other industries showed little employment change.

There were 31,000 more self-employed workers in December. Compared with 12 months earlier, self-employment was up two per cent, while the number of private sector employees rose 1.3 per cent, and the number of public sector workers was unchanged.

Employment increased in December among people aged 55 and over. At the same time, there was a decline among youths aged 15 to 24, and little change for people aged 25 to 54.

On a province-to-province basis, employment in British Columbia rose by 11,000 in December. Over the previous 12 months, employment in the province grew 1.4 per cent (32,000), slightly above the national average of 1.2 per cent.

Nova Scotia's employment increased for a second consecutive month in December, up 4,300. The unemployment rate fell 0.8 percentage points to 7.8 per cent, the lowest since October 2008. Over the past 12 months, employment has risen 2.3 per cent (11,000) in the province.

In December, employment was up 3,200 in Newfoundland and Labrador, bringing growth over the previous 12 months to 1.9 per cent.

In Saskatchewan, employment rose by 3,100. Employment in the province was up 0.7 per cent (+3,700) compared with December 2010.

Employment increased by 2,900 in New Brunswick, returning to its level of 12 months earlier.
In Ontario, employment edged up by 16,000, bringing growth since December 2010 to 1.4 per cent (+91,000). The unemployment rate in the province was 7.7 per cent in December, down 0.2 percentage points from a month earlier.

Employment in Quebec decreased for a third consecutive month, down 26,000 in December. As a result, the unemployment rate rose 0.7 percentage points to 8.7 per cent. Compared with a year earlier, employment in Quebec was down 1.3 per cent (-51,000). While employment in Alberta was little changed in December, it grew 4.9 per cent (+99,000) over the year, entirely in full-time work.

Posted by Heidi Ulrichsen