Minister comments on statements by Opposition industry critic

Industry, Trade and Rural Development Minister Kelvin Parsons says recent statements made by Opposition industry critic Ed Byrne about the province�s employment figures are both misleading and hypocritical.

"In the House of Assembly on April 24, Mr. Byrne suggested that the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has not been honest with the people of this province in reporting on the improving overall employment situation in Newfoundland and Labrador. I find this assertion appalling. The facts as reported by government speak for themselves and come from an independent source in the name of Statistics Canada � not from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador itself," said Minister Parsons.

The minister noted the following employment figures for Newfoundland and Labrador as compiled and released by Statistics Canada:

• Total average employment in 2001 was 211,300, the highest level ever recorded in the province�s history and surpassing the previous record high of 207,400 set in 1990.
  
  
• Between 1996 and 2001, employment grew from 187,000 to 211,300, for a gain of 24,300 new jobs.
  
  
• Over this same period, full-time employment increased by 24,700 jobs, from 156,100 to 180,800. Part-time employment decreased over this same period from 30,900 jobs to 30,500 jobs. In 2001 alone, employment grew by 6,700 jobs, 97 per cent or 6,500 of which were full-time jobs. Mr. Byrne made a statement in the House of Assembly on April 24 that 80 per cent of new job growth has been part-time employment. Statistics Canada figures do not support this statement.
  
  
• Of the 24,300 new jobs created between 1996 and 2001, 15,400 or 63 per cent were created outside the St. John�s area.
  
  
• The unemployment rate for the province was 16.1 per cent in 2001, the fifth consecutive year the unemployment rate has fallen.

In the legislature, Mr. Byrne also accused government of using its special employment initiative that was launched in the middle of November last year to "artificially inflate" record employment levels achieved in 2001. "This is both inaccurate and hypocritical on the part of the Opposition," Minister Parsons said. "This is the same initiative that Opposition MHAs repeatedly asked for last year and when the initial funding for the program was announced on November 14, 2001, they asked for the funding to be increased. It is hypocritical of the Opposition to praise an initiative taken by the government on one hand, and indeed encourage the government to do more on this front, and then slap government�s other hand for providing what they asked for."

Minister Parsons also said that any suggestion that the special employment initiative "artificially inflated" the record high employment numbers achieved for the year 2001 is plain wrong. When the special employment initiative was announced on November 14, 2001, employment figures up to that time were already at record highs, as reported by Statistics Canada. In fact, ten of the twelve months in 2001 posted record highs for employment ever. The facts clearly show that employment has been growing steadily since 1996," stated the minister.

Minister Parsons added, "but even if we were to assume that 6,000 people were employed for only two weeks each under the special employment initiative, which is not the case, this would only translate into 500 new jobs averaged over the full twelve-month period that Statistics Canada uses to compile annual employment figures. Such a scenario, if it were accurate, would not, in other words, have any significant impact on the annual employment figures reported by Statistics Canada."

Minister Parsons said: "It is clear, based on any objective examination of Statistics Canada figures that the overall employment situation has improved significantly over the past several years and is not a short-term or artificial phenomena as the Opposition is trying to portray."

The minister also emphasized that "while progress is being made in rebuilding the economy, we as a government also recognize that much more needs to be done, especially in rural areas. That is what the Renewal Strategy on Jobs and Growth is all about and we are confident that the continued implementation of that agenda will lead to further economic and employment growth for all areas of the province."

Media contact: Josephine Cheeseman, Communications, (709) 729-4570.

Source: Statistics Canada

Note 1: Since 1996, full-time employment in the province has increased by 24,700 jobs, from 156,100 jobs to 180,800. Over the same time period part-time employment has decreased by 400 jobs from 30,900 to 30,500 jobs. This is a net gain in total employment of 24,300 jobs.

Note 2: Between 2000 and 2001 the number of full-time jobs increased by 6,500 and the number of part-time jobs increased by 200, for a total increase of 6,700 jobs.

2002 04 26                        3:05 p.m.