Unemployment Up Nationwide in August
The Labour Force Survey for August 2024, released on September 6, 2024, indicates the following key findings regarding employment and unemployment across Canada:
- Total Employment: The total number of employed individuals in Canada reached 20,536,000, reflecting a slight increase of 0.1% from the previous month.
- Employment Rate: The employment rate decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 60.8%, marking the fourth consecutive month of decline. Year-over-year, the employment rate fell by 1.2 percentage points.
- Unemployment Rate: The national unemployment rate rose to 7.1%, an increase of 0.4 percentage points from July 2024.
- Provincial Highlights:
- Ontario: Employment remained stable with little change, while the unemployment rate increased.
- Alberta: Employment rose by 13,000 (+0.5%), but the unemployment rate increased to 7.7%.
- Nova Scotia: Employment increased by 5,000 (+1.0%), with the unemployment rate stable at 6.7%.
- Newfoundland and Labrador: Experienced a decline in employment by 2,400 (-1.0%), raising the unemployment rate to 10.4%.
- Census Metropolitan Areas: Among the largest census metropolitan areas, Windsor had the highest unemployment rate at 9.2%, while Victoria had the lowest at 3.3%.
The next release of the Labour Force Survey is scheduled for October 11, 2024, which will provide data reflecting conditions during the week of September 15 to 21, 2024.