Employment rose by 47,000 (+0.2%) in September while the employment rate declined 0.1 percentage points to 60.7%. The unemployment rate fell 0.1 percentage points to 6.5%, reported Statistics Canada on Friday.
In September, employment rose among youth aged 15 to 24 (+33,000; +1.2%) and core-aged women (25 to 54 years old) (+21,000; +0.3%), the federal agency added.
“There were more people employed in information, culture and recreation (+22,000; +2.6%), wholesale and retail trade (+22,000; +0.8%) and professional, scientific and technical services (+21,000; +1.1%) in September. Employment increased in Ontario (+43,000; +0.5%), Quebec (+22,000; +0.5%), Manitoba (+5,100; +0.7%) and Nova Scotia (+3,000; +0.6%) in September, while there were declines in British Columbia (-18,000; -0.6%) and New Brunswick (-4,100; -1.0%),” it said.
“Total hours worked fell 0.4% in September but were up 1.2% compared with 12 months earlier. Average hourly wages among employees increased 4.6% (+$1.58 to $35.59) on a year-over-year basis in September, following growth of 5.0% in August (not seasonally adjusted).”
StatsCan said employment rose in September, following four consecutive months of little change.
“Despite the employment gain, the employment rate—the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who is employed—fell 0.1 percentage points to 60.7% in September,” it said.
“The employment rate has followed a downward trend since reaching a recent peak of 62.4% in January and February 2023, as growth in the population aged 15 and older in the Labour Force Survey (LFS) outpaced employment growth. On a year-over-year basis, employment was up by 313,000 (+1.5%) in September, while the population aged 15 and older in the LFS was up by 1.2 million (+3.6%).”
Photo: Ron Lach
“Full-time employment rose by 112,000 (+0.7%) in September, the largest gain since May 2022. The increase in September was partially offset by a decline in part-time work (-65,000; -1.7%). On a year-over-year basis, part-time employment rose at a faster pace (+2.0%; +72,000) than full-time employment (+1.4%; +240,000).”
The federal agency said the unemployment rate fell following an increase of 0.2 percentage points in August. This was the first decline in the unemployment rate since January.
The decline in the overall unemployment rate was driven by youth aged 15 to 24, whose unemployment rate fell 1.0 percentage points to 13.5% in September. Despite the decrease in the month, the youth unemployment rate was up 2.8 percentage points on a year-over-year basis in September, reflecting increases among both young men (+3.7 percentage points to 15.3%) and young women (+1.8 percentage points to 11.5%), added the report.
“The labour force participation rate—the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who are employed or looking for work—fell 0.2 percentage points to 64.9% in September, the third decline in four months. On a year-over-year basis, the overall participation rate was down 0.7 percentage points,” explained the federal agency.
Mario Toneguzzi
Mario Toneguzzi is Managing Editor of Canada’s Podcast. He has more than 40 years of experience as a daily newspaper writer, columnist, and editor. He was named in 2021 as one of the Top 10 Business Journalists in the World by PR News – the only Canadian to make the list. He was also named by RETHINK to its global list of Top Retail Experts 2024.
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