Construction employment rebounds
By Adam Freill
Construction LabourAfter falling by almost 20,000 positions in September, Statistics Canada reports a gain of more than 20,000 in October.
Construction leads employment growth in October. (Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (3701), table 14-10-0355-01)
Construction employment rebounded in October, increasing by 23,000 and more than offsetting September’s drop of 18,000 workers, reports Statistics Canada in its latest Labour Force Survey. Despite the increase, employment in the industry was little changed from October of 2022, and down by 32,000 from the record high reached in January 2023.
Overall, across all industries, Canadian employment was relatively flat in October, rising just one-tenth of a per cent and adding 18,000 positions over the September figures. Both full-time and part-time employment have held steady since September.
Looking at the broader employment rate, or the proportion of the working-age population that is employed, the latest numbers indicate a slight slip of 0.1 percentage points to 61.9 per cent in October, as the population aged 15 and older in the Labour Force Survey increased by 85,000 (0.3 per cent). Since January 2023, employment growth has averaged 28,000 per month, while growth in the population aged 15 and older has averaged 81,000 per month.
Canada’s unemployment rate increased in October, rising 0.2 percentage points to reach 5.7 per cent. That was the fourth monthly increase in the past six months. Since April, the rate has increased by 0.7 percentage points, after holding steady at a near record-low 5.0 per cent from December 2022 to April 2023.
There were 1.2 million unemployed persons in October, an increase of 171,000 since April, and the research indicates that job seekers are facing more difficulties finding employment than a year ago. As unemployment has increased and job vacancies have decreased in recent months, the labour force participation rate—the proportion of the population aged 15 and older that was either employed or looking for work—has remained relatively high. The participation rate of 65.6 per cent in October was unchanged from the previous month and up 0.2 percentage points on a year-over-year basis.
