Canada’s Unemployment Rate at All-time Low of 5.2%  

anada’s unemployment rate has hit an all-time low of 5.2 percent, the latest report by Statistics Canada reveals. The unemployment rate has fallen to 5.2 percent in April (with 15,300 new jobs added), down from 5.3 percent recorded in March this year.

Scientific and technical services have been the major gainers with 15,000 people working in these sectors in April. The public administration category added 17,000 new people. However, the number of individuals working in the retail trade came down by 22,000 in April, and construction workers fell by 21,000.

The report further states that the unemployment rate for people aged between 25 to 54 years is further lower at 4.3 percent. It has been counted as the lowest recorded unemployment rate ever since 1976 when there was enough comparable data available. For immigrants, the unemployment rate came down to 5.5 percent in April, down from 5.8 percent in March.

Government Eases Foreign Workers' Norms 

There has been an increase in the overall job vacancy rate in Canada, with a total of 800,000+ jobs remaining unfilled. The number of vacant positions has propelled the federal government and Canadian provinces to consider relaxing their Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) rules.

Recently, Alberta made an announcement about opening up more occupations to accept foreign workers, including those that were on a “refusal to process” list because there was a labour surplus.

The federal government eased its TFWP rules to let employers hire qualified people from other countries to address labour force requirements. This can lead to a surge in the number of immigrants coming to Canada in the next few years.

According to official estimates, about 430,000 immigrants are expected to reach Canada every year under the Immigration Levels Plan 2022-2024.

Steady Employment Rate in April

The report further stated that the employment rate remained steady at 61.9 percent in April. Employment increased for core-aged women by 0.7 percent and declined for core-aged men by 0.5 percent. Provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Alberta saw a rise in employment, while Quebec witnessed a decline.

Statistics Canada noticed an interesting trend of the people earning less than $20 per hour in April making up 25.9 percent of the total employees, which is way below 35.5 percent in April 2019. But the employees making $40 or more per hour constituted 24.5 percent of all employees, which is higher than 18.0 percent in April 2019. 

Rising Wages

Data collected projects a boom in the employment market and a rise in wages. As compared to 2018, before the COVID-19 pandemic happened, approximately 40 percent of all Canadian workers made less than $20 an hour, and only one out of seven made above $40 per hour.

Trends today depict that the ratio is significantly different and almost at par. The percentage of individuals earning below $20 an hour has fallen to 26 percent, and the percentage of those making more than $40 has risen to 24.5 percent of the total workers.

Market experts credit this change to the current employment situation of high inflation and the lowest ever unemployment rate. It is making Canadian workers opt for jobs with higher wages much faster than before. 

Employee shortage is acute in some industries and employers have been facing difficulties in getting qualified and skilled people on board. The number of vacant positions has been rising, with a mismatch in the skills and talent of the unemployed individuals and the job requirements of the employers. 

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(News Source: www.cicnews.com)