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Employment virtually unchanged in December, unemployment rate holds steady at 5.8%

Canada’s job market was virtually unchanged in December compared to the previous month, according to new data from Statistics Canada.

The national unemployment rate held steady at 5.8% last month, unchanged from November 2023. The overall employment rate dipped slightly, down 0.2 percentage points to 61.6% as the population aged 15 and older grew by 74,000 or 0.2%.

Employment growth slowed in the second half of 2023, averaging 23,000 per month, compared with the first six months of 2023, when it averaged 48,000 per month, it said.

The employment rate has trended down in 2023, as population growth generally outpaced employment gains. In December, the employment rate (61.6%) was down 0.9 percentage points from its recent high of 62.5% recorded in January 2023.

Gains in professional, scientific and technical services

Employment in professional, scientific and technical services increased by 46,000 (+2.4%) in December, following little change in the three previous months. This was the second monthly increase in the industry in 2023, the first having been a rise of 52,000 in August. On a year-over-year basis, employment in this industry was up by 78,000 (+4.2%) in December.

Following four months of little change, employment in health care and social assistance rose by 16,000 (+0.6%) in December, building on increases in June (+21,000) and July (+25,000). On a year-over-year basis, employment in health care and social assistance was up by 124,000 (+4.8%) in December. According to the most recent data from the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey, the job vacancy rate in healthcare and social assistance was 5.3% in October 2023, down from a peak of 6.3% in April, but still the highest rate across all sectors.

For a third consecutive month, employment fell in wholesale and retail trade (-21,000; -0.7%) in December. From August to December, employment in the industry decreased by 80,000 (-2.7%). This followed gains from December 2022 to August 2023, when employment increased by 108,000 (+3.7%).

Employment rises in four provinces, Ontario records decline

Employment rose in British Columbia (+18,000; +0.6%), Nova Scotia (+6,300; +1.3%), Saskatchewan (+4,800; +0.8%), and Newfoundland and Labrador (+2,400; +1.0%) in December, while it declined in Ontario (-48,000; -0.6%). There was little change in the other provinces.

Following an increase in September 2023 and little change in October and November, employment in British Columbia rose by 18,000 (+0.6%) in December. The employment rate was 62.0%, up 0.3 percentage points in the month, but little changed on a year-over-year basis. Despite the increase in employment, there were also more people searching for work and the unemployment rate rose 0.3 percentage points to 5.6% in December.

After five months of little change, employment in Ontario decreased by 48,000 (-0.6%) in December. The employment rate in the province fell from a recent peak of 62.3% in April to 60.8% in December, as employment was virtually unchanged (-15,000; -0.2%) over this period, while the population aged 15 and older was up by 289,000 (+2.3%). The unemployment rate in Ontario was 6.3% in December, up 0.2 percentage points from November and up 1.4 percentage points from April.

Employment in Quebec was little changed for the second consecutive month in December. As fewer people looked for work, the unemployment rate fell 0.5 percentage points to 4.7%, partly offsetting the increase of 0.8 percentage points observed in October and November. On a year-over-year basis, employment in Quebec was up by 1.5% (+65,000) in December, while the employment rate was little changed (61.8% in December 2023, compared with 62.0% in December 2022).