Stats Canada: Unemployment rate at its lowest level in more than 40 years

Jan 6 2018, 2:57 am

The unemployment rate in Canada is at its lowest level since January 1976.

According to Statistics Canada, the downward trend continued in December, decreasing to 5.7%, which is the lowest since comparable data became available 42 years ago.

Meanwhile, employment increased for a third consecutive month, up 79,000 in December. Stats Canada says that the employment increase in December was concentrated in part-time work, which rose by 55,000.

December’s growth followed the build earlier in October and November, which boosted gains for the fourth quarter, making it the most “robust rate of quarterly growth” since the second quarter of 2010.

Unemployment rate/Stats Canada

Across Canada, the unemployment rate followed a downward trend in the 12 months to December.

In Ontario, employment grew 2.5% in 2017, which is over double the growth rate recorded in each of the previous two years. The unemployment rate in the province fell by 0.9% in 2017, capping the year at 5.5%.

Quebec had close numbers when it came to employment growth, provincially seeing a rise by 2.1%. The unemployment rate continues its two-year downward trend, falling to 4.9% at the end of the year.

Heading west, British Columbia finished the year with an employment growth rate of 3.4%, which is similar to that of 2016 according to Stats Canada. Unemployment rate there fell to 4.6%, the lowest among all provinces.

Following a slower employment rate between 2015 and 2016, Alberta saw a growth rate of 2.4%, its best performance since 2014. The unemployment rate fell from 8.5% at the end of 2016 to 6.9% at the end of 2017.

It was good news all around for employment in Canada.

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