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May 06, 2022LABOUR MARKET TRENDS - APRIL 2022 Labour force survey results reflect the period from April 10 to 16. Most capacity limits implemented to contain the Omicron variant of COVID-19 had been lifted, although some masking, vaccination proof, or testing remained in some settings in some provinces. Nova Scotia moved into phase 3 reopening on March 21, 2022, and changes since then are first reflected in the April 2022 results.
Ages 15+ (April 2022 vs March 2022, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia's seasonally adjusted employment increased by 5,900 (+1.2%) from March 2022 to 481,500 in April 2022. This monthly increase is the largest since June 2021 and Nova Scotia employment has increased in five of the last six months.
The increase in employment was attributable to higher full-time employment (+3,100) and part-time employment (+2,900). These changes include variations in hours within the same job. Both employment (481,500 jobs) and full-time employment (394,100 full-time positions) were at record levels for the Labour Force Survey in monthly results that started in January 1976.
Nova Scotia’s labour force increased by 3,800 (+0.7%) to 512,100 in April 2022. This is the highest labour force on record.
With employment rising faster than labour force, Nova Scotia's unemployment rate declined from 6.5% in March 2022 to 6.0% in April 2022. This is the lowest unemployment rate in the monthly Labour Force Survey records dating back to 1976. Annual unemployment rates were lower in the 1960s and early 1970s.
Nova Scotia's labour force participation rate rose by 0.4 percentage points to 61.4% in April 2022. The employment rate was up 0.6 percentage points to 57.7% in April 2022. Although employment levels are above pre-COVID benchmarks, the participation rate remains below the level observed in February 2020 (62.6%).
Ages 15+ (April 2022 vs April 2021, seasonally adjusted)
Compared with the same month last year, Nova Scotia's population increased by 16,700 while the labour force grew by 5,700 and employment increased by 15,900. The unemployment rate decreased by 2.0 percentage points while the participation rate declined by 0.5 percentage points. The employment rate increased by 0.8 percentage points.
Age Cohorts (April 2022 vs March 2022, seasonally adjusted)
Among youth (ages 15-24), employment increased 3,300 (+5.2%) while the labour force increased by 1,500 (+2.1%). The increase in the labour force resulted in the youth participation rate increasing to 68.0% while the employment rate was up to 61.3%. The faster increase in employment than labour force moved the youth unemployment rate down to 9.9%.
The population aged 25-54 makes up the largest part of the labour force. In the core age group, employment declined by 900 (-0.3%) and the labour force declined by 900 (-0.3%). The core aged unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.6% in April. This is the second lowest core aged unemployment rate (the lowest was February 2022) than at any time since the start of the monthly labour force survey in 1976; this monthly unemployment rate had not previously been below 5.0%.
Older workers (aged 55+) reported increases in both labour force (+3,100 or +2.5%) and employment (3,600 or 3.1%). The participation rate rose to 34.9% and the unemployment rate for older workers declined to 7.0%.
Males and Females (Ages 15+, April 2022 vs March 2022, seasonally adjusted)
The monthly employment gain was larger among females (+3,500 or 1.5%) than males (+2,500 or 1.0%). While the male labour force was up 2,200 (+0.9%) compared to small increase in female labour force of 1,600 (+0.6%).
The male unemployment rate fell by 0.2 percentage points to 6.4% as employment grew faster than the labour force. The female unemployment rate declined by 0.8 percentage points to 5.5% in April 2022 as employment grew faster than the labour force.
Male participation rates increased to 64.6% in April 2022 while female participation rates edged was up to 58.4%. The employment rate for males was 60.4% while the female employment rate was 55.1%.
Overall, last month's increase in employment occurred for all groups except aged 25-54. The increase in labour force was concentrated those aged 55 and over.
Age and sex cohorts (April 2022 vs April 2021, seasonally adjusted)
Since April 2021, employment gains were reported in each age cohort. Growth in male employment was notably faster than for females. Males and core aged workers reported larger decreases in unemployment. The labour force slightly contracted for those aged 15-24.
Class of Worker (April 2022 vs March 2022, seasonally adjusted)
The April 2022 employment increase was among all classes of workers: public sector employees (+1,800 or +1.5%), private sector employment (+1,800 or +0.6%), and self-employment (+2,300 or +3.8%).
Class of Worker (April 2022 vs April 2021, seasonally adjusted)
Compared with April 2021, there were substantial gains in employment for private sector workers (+13,200 or +4.6%) and self-employed (+6,800 or +12.3%). Public sector employees are down 4,200 (-3.4%) compared to April 2021.
Industry of Employment (April 2022 vs March 2022, seasonally adjusted)
The employment increase from March to April was notably concentrated in services while all goods sectors had declines. Manufacturing (-2,700) had the largest decline. Notable increase in employment occurred in wholesale/retail, accommodation/food services, finance/insurance/real estate, and information/culture/recreation.
Industry of Employment (April 2022 vs April 2021, seasonally adjusted)
Over the last 12 months, employment has risen notably in professional services, health care and social assistance, wholesale/retail, business and support services, finance/insurance/real estate, and construction. These increases were partially offset by lower employment in education, forestry/fishing/mining, and manufacturing.
Hours worked (April 2022 vs April 2021, unadjusted)
Changes in hours worked (unadjusted) show different variations than changes in seasonally adjusted employment from April 2021 to April 2022. Overall employment was up 3.4% from April 2021 to April 2022, while hours worked decrease by 7.6%. Employment has grown in several sectors while hours are down: construction, wholesale/retail, transportation, finance/insurance/real estate, professional services, health care and social assistance, information/culture/recreation, personal/repair services, and public administration.
Average weekly earnings (unadjusted, both full time and part time, April 2022 vs April 2021)
Average weekly earnings increased by 3.8% from April 2021 to April 2022. Earnings were up by double digits across several industries: forestry/fishing/mining, business support services, professional/technical services, construction, accommodation/food service, and personal and repair services. Average weekly earnings were down in agriculture, information/culture/recreation, public administration, transportation and wholesale/retail.
Average weekly earnings across all employees were $989.15 in April 2022. The highest average weekly earnings (both full and part time employees) were reported in forestry/fishing/mining, utilities, professional/technical services and public administration. The lowest average weekly earnings were in accommodation/food and wholesale/retail.
Regions (April 2022 vs April 2021, unadjusted 3 month moving average)
Compared with April 2021, labour force has increase in Cape Breton and Annapolis Valley while decrease in other regions. Employment has increase in Cape Breton, Annapolis Valley and Halifax since April 2021. The unemployment rate declined in Annapolis Valley from 9.5% to 5.1% with employment growth outpacing labour force growth. Halifax unemployment rate is down 3.3 percentage points to 5.0%.
Provincial Comparisons (April 2022 vs March 2022, seasonally adjusted)
Canada's employment increased by 15,300 (+0.1%) from March to April, following on two months of gains as many restrictions to contain the Omicron variant of COVID-19 had been eased. The largest percentage employment gains were in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Employment declined in five provinces, led by Ontario.
The labour force was essentially unchanged nationally. The largest increases in labour force were reported in New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador, while the largest declines were in Quebec and Prince Edward Island.
Provincial Comparisons (April 2022 vs April 2021, seasonally adjusted)
Compared with April 2021, national employment was up 5.2% while labour force increased by 2.1%. Only Manitoba reported a decline in the labour force over this period, though it reported rising employment. All other provinces reported both rising labour force as well as employment. The fastest gain in employment was Saskatchewan and for labour force was Prince Edward Island.
The national unemployment rate was 5.2% in April 2022, down from 5.3% in March 2022 and 8.0% in April 2021. This was the lowest unemployment rate for Canada in the monthly Labour Force Survey results that started in 1976. Newfoundland and Labrador reported the highest unemployment rate while the lowest unemployment rates were reported in Quebec.
The national participation rate was 65.3% in April 2022. The highest participation rates were in Alberta while the lowest were in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The national employment rate was 61.9% in April 2022. Alberta reported the highest employment rate while Newfoundland and Labrador reported the lowest.
Census Metropolitan Areas (April 2022, seasonally adjusted 3 month moving average)
Data for Census Metropolitan Areas are three month moving averages from February 2022 to April 2022. As restrictions changed over these months, the three month moving averages may not reflect the volatility observed from month to month.
The Halifax unemployment rate was 4.9% in the April 2022 three month moving average. This was similar to other Census Metropolitan Areas, but lower than in the rest of Nova Scotia (7.8%). Generally, unemployment rates in Census Metropolitan Areas are similar to unemployment rates outside CMAs; the Atlantic Provinces are the exception with substantially higher unemployment rates outside CMAs.
Halifax's participation rate was 66.3% in the April 2022 three month moving average.
Halifax reported an employment rate of 63.1% in the April 2022 three month moving average.
Sources: Statistics Canada. Table 14-10-0036-01 Actual hours worked by industry, monthly, unadjusted for seasonality; Table 14-10-0063-01 Employee wages by industry, monthly, unadjusted for seasonality; Table 14-10-0287-01 Labour force characteristics, monthly, seasonally adjusted and trend-cycle, last 5 months; Table 14-10-0294-01 Labour force characteristics by census metropolitan area, three-month moving average, seasonally adjusted and unadjusted, last 5 months; Table 14-10-0293-01 Labour force characteristics by economic region, three-month moving average, unadjusted for seasonality, last 5 months; Table 14-10-0355-01 Employment by industry, monthly, seasonally adjusted and unadjusted, and trend-cycle, last 5 months (x 1,000); Table 14-10-0288-01 Employment by class of worker, monthly, seasonally adjusted and unadjusted, last 5 months (x 1,000); Table: 14-10-0380-02 Labour force characteristics, three month moving average, seasonally adjusted (x 1,000)
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