Construction employment flat in July
By Adam Freill
Construction LabourWages up, number of workers almost unchanged while more than 60,000 openings exist in the construction sector.
Payroll employment, by sector, in July. (Source: Statistics Canada, Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (2612), table 14-10-0220-01.)
The dial barely moved on construction employment in July, according to the latest Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours from Statistics Canada. The sector lost about 500 jobs compared to June, with 1,175,400 people working in the sector. That was 3.4 per cent more workers than July of 2022, however, a gain of more than 38,000 positions.
Across all sectors, the number of employees receiving pay and benefits from an employer was also little changed, with just 4,900 more positions filled in July. June had seen an increase of 65,900 workers.
Overall, job vacancies were down by 43,100 positions, a dip of 5.8 per cent, with 701,300 opening available in July. This continued the steady downward trend that has been happening since June of last year. The construction sector had almost 62,000 positions available to be filled in July, placing it fourth amongst all industry sectors represented in the survey. The job vacancy rate for construction came in at five per cent for the month.
On a month-over-month basis, average weekly earnings were up 0.8 per cent, to $1,215, following monthly growth of 0.4 per cent in both May and June. The largest gains in July were recorded in public administration and construction, with construction posting a gain of 1.6 per cent to come in at $1,509.
