Manitoba Labour Market: Unemployment rate continues to decline

4-5 Minute Read

The Winnipeg Chamber’s Policy & Research Analyst, Jamil Ahmed, highlights current unemployment and job vacancy issues in Manitoba

Key Takeaways

The unemployment rate in Canada has reached a new low. According to Statistics Canada, in April 2022, unemployment dropped to 5.2 percent, down from 5.3 percent in March of this year.. Manitoba’s unemployment rate fell to 5% in April 2022, down from 5.3 percent in March.
Employment increased in the Atlantic and Alberta, but it decreased in Quebec. New Brunswick had the most job growth (+1.8%), while Quebec had the most job losses (-0.6%). Manitoba’s employment fell by 500 people (-0.1%). This comes after a 4,200-position drop the prior month.
In Manitoba, Full time employment increased by 3500 positions whereas part time employment decreased by 4000 positions, female employment climbed by 1,600 jobs (+0.5%) in April, with gains in part-time jobs (+600; +0.7%) and full-time positions (+900; +0.9%). Male employment fell by 2,000 (-0.6%) in April, owing to declines in part-time jobs (-4,600; -9.7%), which were somewhat offset by gains in full-time positions (+2,600; +0.9%).
Employment was down for the Goods-producing sector (-4,400 positions), but employment was up for the Service-producing sector (4,000 positions) in Manitoba. Furthermore, Professional Services (2,400) and Public administration (1,300) were up in jobs, while the agriculture and construction sectors were off by 3,100 and 1,100 jobs.
According to Statistics Canada, Manitoba’s average hourly wage rate ($27.07) is the lowest among the prairies region and the third lowest among other provinces in Canada. In Canada, average hourly salaries increased 3.3% year over year in April, close to the increases seen in March (+3.4%), which is still below the current inflation level of 6.7%. In Manitoba, the average hourly salaries were up by only 0.7% year over in April.
According to the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey, Manitoba’s job vacancies increased to 25,765 in the forth quarter of 2021. Job Vacancy and Wage Survey results show that, as of the fourth quarter of 2021, the number of vacant jobs in occupations where the average offered hourly wage is less than $20.00 was 8,690 (33.73%).
Job Vacancies in Manitoba are high in five sectors in the fourth quarter of 2021, namely, Health care and social assistance (6,010; 23%), Accommodation and food services ( 3,085; 12%), Transportation and Warehouse sector (2,520; 10%), Retail and Trade (2,285; 9%) and Construction (1,840; 7%).