New Year starts off with increase in employment for province

Employment in the province increased by 4,600 in January as compared to the same time period last year according to the latest Labour Force Survey from Statistics Canada.

"Last month, Statistics Canada reported that the province broke a new record in employment for 2001," said Gerald Smith, Minister of Human Resources and Employment. "It�s great to see this positive trend continue into the new year."

For the month of January, year-over-year employment grew by 2.4 per cent to 195,500. There was also a significant increase in labour force participation which is a strong indicator that people are optimistic about finding work. The labour force grew by 4.7 per cent to 242,200 for the same time period. These higher participation numbers pushed the unemployment rate to 19.3 per cent from 17.5 percent in January 2001.

On an industry basis, employment growth was concentrated in wholesale and retail trade, management services, and information, culture and recreation services.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, employment declined by 0.9 per cent compared to December 2001, and the unemployment rate increased by 0.4 percentage points to 17.4 per cent compared to the previous month.

"While it is still early in the new year, we have started on a positive note and are cautiously optimistic that employment growth will continue," said Minister Smith.

Media contact: Marcia Porter, Communications, (709) 729-0175.

2002 02 08                        3:00 p.m.