Canada gains 93,000 jobs in June

Canada’s unemployment rate dipped below eight per cent in June for the first time in more than a year, according to Statistics Canada, as 93,000 new jobs were added that month, almost all of them in Ontario and Quebec.

The outlook was less rosy for the manufacturing sector, however: employment in manufacturing actually dipped by 14,000 jobs in June.

The large number of jobs that were added overall dropped Canada’s unemployment rate to 7.9 per cent. Forecasts had predicted between 15,000 and 20,000 jobs would be added and that the national unemployment rate would be stable at 8.1 per cent. 

Ontario gained 60,300 workers, which cut the province’s unemployment rate to 8.3 per cent. Meanwhile, Quebec gained 30,400 new jobs, trimming its unemployment rate to 7.8 per cent. 

According to StatsCan, the new jobs were evenly split between full time and part time. The private sector was responsible for 51,900 of the new positions. Notable employment increases were in service industries including retail and wholesale trade; business, building and other support services; health care and social assistance; and other services such as automotive repair and personal care services. 

The gains mean that in less than a year, Canada has almost made up all the jobs lost during the recession that began in the last quarter of 2008, StatsCan said.

With the 93,000 jobs added in June, Canada’s economy has added 403,000 jobs since the middle of 2009 — only 14,000 jobs short of its pre-recessionary peak. The economy has added 246,200 jobs in the last four months alone. For more on the StatsCan report, click on this link.