Canada’s job market is back but it looks very different than it did pre-pandemic. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows two diverging employment trends evolving. Canada’s booming economy is producing a low unemployment rate and soaring job vacancies. Despite the tight labor market, long-term unemployment hit the highest level in more than two decades. Canada’s […]
Canada’s central bank renewed its mandate, but with one fundamental change. The Bank of Canada (BoC) will now consider employment in addition to its goal of maintaining a 2% rate of inflation. The Governor stressed, it’s difficult to figure out when full employment is present. Two of Canada’s “Big Six” banks say full employment has […]
Canadian employers are struggling to find labor but this isn’t just reopening pains. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows over one million vacant jobs in September. The common take is, this hiring boom is reopening pains as the economy grows. Further analysis of the same data set shows that might not be the case last […]
Canada prides itself on being an ideal environment for entrepreneurs but stats disagree. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) employment data shows self-employment is shrinking. These individuals now represent the smallest share of employment since the early 1980s. At the same time, the public sector has been hiring roughly two people per self-employed job lost. Employment might […]
Commercial real estate has been in a bit of a rut and it looks like it’s not going to end as fast as some hope. Commercial real estate giant CBRE released its annual Tech 30 report. The firm’s assessment is these markets are in the middle of a contraction phase and have yet to stabilize. […]
Canada’s unemployment fell and things sound a lot better, but it might not be what it seems. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows the unadjusted unemployment rate fell in October. A deeper dive shows a drop in full-time employment was made up by a rise in part-time employment. Also, the drop in unemployed people? It […]
Fewer Canadians quit their job due to satisfaction last month, and it’s bad news for wages. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows job quits due to dissatisfaction fell in September. It might sound like a good thing, but this often indicates a lack of confidence in the employment market. Falling quits means employers are in […]
Canada immigration is improving from pandemic lows, but it’s still weak. A BMO economics analysis shows the net flow of non-permanent residents was minimal in Q2 2021. It’s better than the beginning of the pandemic when the flows were negative, but not by much. The bank sees this as a big contributor to the rising […]
Canadian employers are making jobs faster than people can fill them. In two separate reports, BMO economists took a dive into rising job vacancies and wages in Q2 2021. They found job vacancies hit a new record high last quarter. A lack of labor doesn’t appear to have much urgency though, as wages are still […]
Young Canadians aren’t interested in joining the trades, and it’s a big problem. RBC Economics took a look at skilled workers, and the anticipated shortage. The labor shortage isn’t just due to a large demographic cliff though. Not enough young adults are attracted to the field, nor are new immigrants. This squeeze can result in […]
