2007, a good year for employment in Canada
2007 marks the 15th consecutive year of employment growth in Canada. According to Statistics Canada, unemployment stood at 5.9% while employment increased by 2.2%, a growth rate that far surpasses that of the United States (0.2%).
As in 2006, Alberta once again leads the field in employment, jumping 4.3% in growth and dropping to a rate of 3.2% in unemployment. The growth appeared primarily in the sectors of natural resources, construction, and various branches of the service industry.
New Brunswick, British Columbia and Quebec also profited from industry expansions over the course of this past year. Notably, New Brunswick ranked second among all provinces for employment growth (3.6%), which was concentrated in the sectors of professional, scientific and technical services; health care services and social assistance; public administration; and construction. As for Quebec, the province saw a growth rate of 2.4%, an unparalleled figure in the past five years. This rise, however, was mainly spurred on by part-time work. Increase in employment occurred primarily in construction, public services, housing and food services. The considerable dip in jobs in manufacturing (-7.5 %) were especially manifest in the textile and clothing industry, food products, wood products and printing. British Columbia experienced a growth rate of 3.3%, particularly true in the goods production sector. In Manitoba, the employment rate was 66.3%, in other words, experiencing a growth of 1.9%, the highest since 2002.
Meanwhile, the employment rate only rose 0.3% in Saskatchewan, mainly due to a lack of vitality in the agriculture and trade industries. The unemployment rate of the province, however, is the second lowest (4%) in all of Canada. The weak growth rate in Ontario (1.4 %), attributed entirely to full-time work, reflects a slackening in the goods production industry (-5.6 %). Substantial growth was noted, however, in the service industry (3.6 %), especially in public administration; educational services; information, culture and recreation; as well as in professional, scientific and technical services.
Service, the public sector and independent work win big in 2007
Overall, the service industry took the lion’s share with an average growth of 3.3%, with several of its branches even exceeding this figure, including public administration (9.4%); information, culture and recreation (8.9%); professional, scientific and technical services (5.7%); and finally, transport and storage (4.8%).
Growth was also especially apparent in the public sector (6.5%) and in independent work (4.5%). It was particularly constant in sectors such as public administration, public services, health care and social assistance, as well as in educational services. Employment in the construction industry continued its climb (6.8 %).
On the other hand, employment in the manufacturing industry saw a steep decline (-6.2%) in the wake of the strengthening Canadian dollar, soaring energy costs, as well as stiff competition from abroad. This drop occurred especially in the industries of wood products, vehicles and automobile parts, metal products and furniture. In the goods production sector, employment also took a dip (-1.2%).