Some disheartening news from Stats Canada on Friday: their December 2011 Canadian Labour Force Survey shows employment rose by 18,000 in December; however, the unemployment rate also edged up to 7.5% as more folks were actually looking for jobs.
Some better news is that employment has grown by 199,000 jobs over the past 12 months (1.2%), but the bad news is that most of that was at the start of 2011 (i.e. things are not getting better right now).
The graphic shows little change in the employment area over the past little while. The other unfortunate part is that last month’s growth came from a 43,000-job increase in part-time work; however, full-time jobs fell by 26,000, which I think is significant. In December, a lot of folks took part-time jobs during the Christmas rush to make some extra cash; will those folks leaving those jobs be reflected in January?
This graphic is more worrying, showing the unemployment rate on an upward slope over the past little while.
For those like me who are a little older some nice news:
In December, employment grew by 24,000 among people aged 55 and over. Employment for this age group was up 3.4% (+102,000) compared with 12 months earlier. This increase was almost entirely due to the aging of the population, as the number of people aged 55 and over grew by 3.2% over the period.
My only caveat is: where are these folks working? I see a lot more older folks working at food service and retail jobs these days, and it makes me ask why? Are they supplementing their pensions or maybe they just need this money to live? Those of you younger folks who think I am kidding, wait until you get to my age, you’ll have the same worries!
This time last year things were a little more optimistic with Employment Up a Little More.
The Big Table
Here is one of my favourite Big Tables from the data supplied; check here for this table and check out the other data supplied by Stats Canada.
Table 1 Labour force characteristics by age and sex Seasonally adjusted
| Nov 2011 | Dec 2011 | Nov to Dec 2011 | Dec 2010 to Dec 2011 | Nov to Dec 2011 | Dec 2010 to Dec 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| thousands (except rates) | change in thousands (except rates) | % change | ||||
| Both sexes, 15 years and over | ||||||
| Population | 28,107.1 | 28,130.8 | 23.7 | 316.0 | 0.1 | 1.1 |
| Labour force | 18,721.7 | 18,745.3 | 23.6 | 187.5 | 0.1 | 1.0 |
| Employment | 17,327.0 | 17,344.5 | 17.5 | 199.2 | 0.1 | 1.2 |
| Full-time | 14,069.0 | 14,043.5 | -25.5 | 207.7 | -0.2 | 1.5 |
| Part-time | 3,257.9 | 3,301.0 | 43.1 | -8.6 | 1.3 | -0.3 |
| Unemployment | 1,394.7 | 1,400.8 | 6.1 | -11.7 | 0.4 | -0.8 |
| Participation rate | 66.6 | 66.6 | 0.0 | -0.1 | … | … |
| Unemployment rate | 7.4 | 7.5 | 0.1 | -0.1 | … | … |
| Employment rate | 61.6 | 61.7 | 0.1 | 0.1 | … | … |
| Part-time rate | 18.8 | 19.0 | 0.2 | -0.3 | … | … |
| Youths, 15 to 24 years | ||||||
| Population | 4,457.3 | 4,457.3 | 0.0 | -2.7 | 0.0 | -0.1 |
| Labour force | 2,867.3 | 2,845.6 | -21.7 | -5.6 | -0.8 | -0.2 |
| Employment | 2,461.7 | 2,444.9 | -16.8 | -11.6 | -0.7 | -0.5 |
| Full-time | 1,306.6 | 1,303.5 | -3.1 | 17.7 | -0.2 | 1.4 |
| Part-time | 1,155.2 | 1,141.4 | -13.8 | -29.3 | -1.2 | -2.5 |
| Unemployment | 405.6 | 400.6 | -5.0 | 5.9 | -1.2 | 1.5 |
| Participation rate | 64.3 | 63.8 | -0.5 | -0.1 | … | … |
| Unemployment rate | 14.1 | 14.1 | 0.0 | 0.3 | … | … |
| Employment rate | 55.2 | 54.9 | -0.3 | -0.2 | … | … |
| Part-time rate | 46.9 | 46.7 | -0.2 | -1.0 | … | … |
| Men, 25 years and over | ||||||
| Population | 11,572.0 | 11,583.7 | 11.7 | 159.1 | 0.1 | 1.4 |
| Labour force | 8,383.0 | 8,420.6 | 37.6 | 77.4 | 0.4 | 0.9 |
| Employment | 7,850.2 | 7,865.6 | 15.4 | 84.4 | 0.2 | 1.1 |
| Full-time | 7,256.2 | 7,263.4 | 7.2 | 89.2 | 0.1 | 1.2 |
| Part-time | 594.0 | 602.2 | 8.2 | -4.8 | 1.4 | -0.8 |
| Unemployment | 532.8 | 554.9 | 22.1 | -7.1 | 4.1 | -1.3 |
| Participation rate | 72.4 | 72.7 | 0.3 | -0.3 | … | … |
| Unemployment rate | 6.4 | 6.6 | 0.2 | -0.1 | … | … |
| Employment rate | 67.8 | 67.9 | 0.1 | -0.2 | … | … |
| Part-time rate | 7.6 | 7.7 | 0.1 | -0.1 | … | … |
| Women, 25 years and over | ||||||
| Population | 12,077.8 | 12,089.8 | 12.0 | 159.5 | 0.1 | 1.3 |
| Labour force | 7,471.4 | 7,479.2 | 7.8 | 115.8 | 0.1 | 1.6 |
| Employment | 7,015.1 | 7,033.9 | 18.8 | 126.3 | 0.3 | 1.8 |
| Full-time | 5,506.3 | 5,476.5 | -29.8 | 100.8 | -0.5 | 1.9 |
| Part-time | 1,508.8 | 1,557.4 | 48.6 | 25.5 | 3.2 | 1.7 |
| Unemployment | 456.3 | 445.3 | -11.0 | -10.5 | -2.4 | -2.3 |
| Participation rate | 61.9 | 61.9 | 0.0 | 0.2 | … | … |
| Unemployment rate | 6.1 | 6.0 | -0.1 | -0.2 | … | … |
| Employment rate | 58.1 | 58.2 | 0.1 | 0.3 | … | … |
| Part-time rate | 21.5 | 22.1 | 0.6 | -0.1 | … | … |
Unemployment for 2011 Articles
- Unemployment Up to End 2011. In December, employment grew by 24,000 among people aged 55 and over. Employment for this age group rose 3.4% (+102,000) from 12 months earlier. This increase was almost entirely due to population aging, as the 55-and-over population grew by 3.2% over the period.
- Unemployment up in November 2011 in Canada. In November, employment fell in retail and wholesale trade, as well as business, building and other support services. These losses were partially offset by increases in “other services” (such as personal services and repair and maintenance), as well as in construction, natural resources, and utilities.
- Labour Numbers not good for October 2011 in Canada. After a September increase, employment fell by 54,000 in October, all full-time. October’s loss pushed the unemployment rate up 0.2 percentage points to 7.3%. Over the last year, total employment has risen by 237,000 (+1.4%).
- Optimistic Labour Numbers September 2011. Following two months of little change, employment rose by 61,000 in September, all in full time. This increase pushed the unemployment rate down 0.2 percentage points to 7.1%, the lowest rate since December 2008.
- Employment Stalling in Canada (August 2011). Over the past 12 months, employment grew by 1.3% (+223,000), mainly in Ontario and Alberta and among private-sector employees. Over this period, full-time employment increased 2.2% (+300,000), part-time work declined 2.3% (-77,000), and total actual hours worked rose by 2.6%.
- Employment Stalls a little for July in Canada (2011). After three consecutive months of increases, employment changed little in July. The unemployment rate fell 0.2 percentage points to 7.2% as fewer people participated in the labour market.
- Employment Up in June in Canada (2011). Employment rose for the third consecutive month, up 28,000 in June. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.4% as labour market participation increased. Over the past 12 months, employment has grown by 238,000 (+1.4%).
