The August job numbers are out. Statistics Canada reports that 54,000 full time new jobs were added but they were largely matched by a loss of 42,000 part time jobs. The net result was to bump up the national unemployment rate to 7.0 % In Quebec unemployment rose 0.3% points to 8.0 %. The rate in Ontario was 6.8 %.also up 0.4% points from last month.Unemployment remained at 6.0% in Alberta. So far in 2015 unemployment has risen by 1.3 % points there.It is likely to grow worse as the downturn in the oil patch spreads and jobs are lost in the industry. Unemployment remained at 6.0% in B.C. As usual the participation rates vary widely across the country. In Alberta 72.8%; Saskatchewan 69.6%; and Manitoba 68.1 % These rates are considerably higher than in Quebec 65.0% and Ontario 65.3% or the Atlantic provinces.N.B. 62.6 % Nova Scotia 62.2 ;Newfoundland &Labrador 61.2%. In B.C. the participation rate is 63.3% well below that of neighbouring Alberta.
The employment results are being spun as positive by business economists on Bay street but they don’t strike me that way. Any time the national unemployment rate rises to 7.0 % thats not good news. It will definitely add to the debate over economic policy during the election.If this develops into a trend with another rise in September it will add to the argument that the growth in June was not the beginning of a recovery and not enough to push the economy out of recession.
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About haroldchorneyeconomist
I am Professor of political economy at Concordia university in Montréal, Québec, Canada. I received my B.A.Hons (econ.&poli sci) from the University of Manitoba. I also completed my M.A. degree in economics there. Went on to spend two years at the London School of Economics as a Ph.D. student in economics and then completed my Ph.D. in political economy at the University of Toronto. Was named a John W.Dafoe fellow, a CMHC fellow and a Canada Council fellow. I also was named a Woodrow Wilson fellow in 1968 after completing my first class honours undergraduate degree. Worked as an economist in the area of education, labour economics and as the senior economist with the Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation for the Government of Manitoba from 1972 to 1978. I also have worked as an economic consultant for MDT socio-economic consultants and have been consulted on urban planning, health policy, linguistic duality and public sector finance questions by the governments of Manitoba, Saskatchewan,the cities of Regina and Saskatoon, Ontario and the Federal government of Canada. I have also been consulted by senior leaders of the British Labour party, MPs from the Progressive Conservative party, the Liberal party and the New Democrats on economic policy questions. Members of the Government of France under the Presidency of Francois Mitterand discussed my work on public sector deficits. I have also run for elected office at the municipal level. I first began to write about quantitative easing as a useful policy option during the early 1980s.
haroldchorneyeconomist 