After growing in four of the past six months, employment remained relatively stable across the country in April, according to the latest data from Statistics Canada.
While the full-time employment sector remained stable, that of part-time work nevertheless gained 47,000 new positions occupied last month, or 1.3% more than in March.
Employment gains in professional, scientific and technical services and public administration were offset by declines in construction and retail trade
explains Statistics Canada in its April 2022 Labor Force Survey.
Total hours worked fell 1.9% last month in Canada, notably due to the rise in sickness absences driven by the sixth wave of COVID-19 which peaked in several provinces in April, the agency explains. federal.
At the provincial level, the unemployment rate fell in 6 of the 10 provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Manitoba and Alberta.
Historical low in unemployment in Quebec
Unemployment fell the most in Newfoundland and Labrador, dropping from 12.9% in March to 10.8% in April.
However, it is in Quebec that the unemployment rate is currently the lowest in the country with a historic rate of 3.9%, down 0.2 percentage points from the March data. All this despite a decline of 27,000 jobs recorded in April in the province.
In Ontario, the unemployment rate rose slightly last month (+0.1) to 5.4%, while it increased by 0.5 percentage points in Saskatchewan (5.5%) and 0.3 points in British Columbia (5.4%).