Newfoundland and Labrador Labour Market Brief
November 2011
Labour Force Trends – In November the province had a small employment loss and a slight increase in the size of the labour force. As a result the unemployment rate increased to 13.2%. Employment levels remain strong from a longer term perspective.
- In November, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 13.2% from 12.9% a month earlier as employment levels dropped slightly while the labour force showed a small increase. Part-time job losses were nearly offset by full-time gains.
| Monthly Variation | Yearly Variation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seasonally Adjusted Monthly Data | Nov |
Oct 2011 | Nov 2010 | Number | % |
Number | % |
| Population 15+ ('000) | 428.6 | 428.5 | 428.8 | 0.1 | 0.0% | -0.2 | 0.0% |
| Labour Force ('000) | 258.0 | 257.6 | 256.5 | 0.4 | 0.2% | 1.5 | 0.6% |
| Employment ('000) | 224.0 | 224.3 | 220.5 | -0.3 | -0.1% | 3.5 | 1.6% |
| Full-Time ('000) | 192.8 | 189.9 | 188.6 | 2.9 | 1.5% | 4.2 | 2.2% |
| Part-Time ('000) | 31.2 | 34.4 | 31.9 | -3.2 | -9.3% | -0.7 | -2.2% |
| Unemployment ('000) | 34.0 | 33.2 | 36.0 | 0.8 | 2.4% |
-2.0 | -5.6% |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 13.2 | 12.9 | 14.0 | 0.3 | -0.8 | ||
| Participation Rate (%) | 60.2 | 60.1 | 59.8 | 0.1 | 0.4 | ||
| Employment Rate (%) | 52.3 | 52.3 | 51.4 | 0.0 | 0.9 | ||
| Total may not add due to rounding Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey – HRSDC Table 087 |
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- Compared to 12 months ago, the seasonally adjusted figures show an increase of 3,500 jobs. As the labour force grew at a slightly slower pace, the province’s unemployment rate is down 0.8 percentage points from a year ago. The increase in jobs is attributed to full-time employment growth over the year. Part-time employment is slightly lower than last November.
Employment by Industry – Goods-producing industries showed a small monthly increase while the service-producing sector dropped slightly. The goods-producing sector has driven growth over the year.
- A small increase in goods-producing employment was basically offset by a slight drop in service-producing jobs. Construction remained quite strong, reaching a record high. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services fell off from its record high in October.
- Over the past twelve months, most of the province’s employment growth has been in the goods-producing sector, led by Construction. The service-producing sector appears relatively unchanged overall. Notable declines were reported in Trade. Business, Building and Other Support Services as well as Professional, Scientific and Technical Services increased considerably.
| Monthly Variation | Yearly Variation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seasonally Adjusted Data ('000) | Nov 2011 | Oct 2011 | Nov 2010 |
Number | % | Number | % |
| Total Industry (000) | 224.0 | 224.3 | 220.5 | -0.3 | -0.1% | 3.5 | 1.6% |
| Goods-Producing Sector | 48.3 | 47.9 | 44.4 | 0.4 | 0.8% | 3.9 | 8.8% |
| Agriculture | 1.6 | 2.1 | 2.3 | -0.5 | -23.8% | -0.7 | -30.4% |
| Forestry, Fishing, Mining, Oil & Gas | 14.7 | 14.2 | 15.7 | 0.5 | 0.7% | -2.3 | -13.9% |
| Utilities | 2.3 | 2.1 | 2.0 | 0.2 | 9.5% | 0.3 | 15.0% |
| Construction | 19.8 | 19.3 | 15.6 | 0.5 | 2.6% | 4.2 | 26.9% |
| Manufacturing | 9.9 | 10.1 | 8.9 | -0.2 | -2.0% | 1.0 | 11.2% |
| Services-Producing Sector | 175.8 | 176.4 |
176.0 | -0.6 | -0.3% | -0.2 | -0.1% |
| Trade | 35.6 | 36.0 | 39.4 | -0.4 | -1.1% | -3.8 | -9.6% |
| Transportation & Warehousing | 9.4 | 10.1 | 11.2 | -0.7 | -6.9% | -1.8 | -16.1% |
| Finance, Insurance, Real Estate & Leasing | 8.9 | 8.6 | 6.4 | 0.3 | 3.5% | 2.5 | 39.1% |
| Professional, Scientific & Technical Services | 9.7 | 10.3 | 7.5 | -0.6 | -5.8% | 2.2 | 29.3% |
| Business, Building and Other Support Services | 6.3 | 5.9 | 5.9 | 0.4 | 6.8% | 0.4 | 6.8% |
| Educational Services | 17.3 | 18.3 | 17.7 | -1.0 | -5.5% | -0.4 | -2.3% |
| Health Care & Social Assistance | 35.2 | 34.2 | 35.2 | 1.0 | 2.9% | 0.0 | 0.0% |
| Information, Culture & Recreation | 7.1 | 7.9 | 8.6 | -0.8 | -10.1% | -1.5 | -17.4% |
| Accommodation & Food Services | 13.7 | 13.0 | 13.6 | 0.7 | 5.4% | 0.1 | 0.7% |
| Other Services | 12.3 | 11.6 | 11.2 | 0.7 | 6.0% | 1.1 | 9.8% |
| Public Administration | 20.2 | 20.6 | 19.3 | -0.4 | -1.9% | 0.9 | 4.7% |
| "--" indicates number suppressed due to high sample variance Total may not add due to rounding Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey – HRSDC Table-88 |
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- The unadjusted industry data shows growth in goods-producing industries offsetting small losses in the service sector over the past year. In the goods sector, gains were made in Construction and Mining and Oil & Gas while Fishing showed a decline. Trade was down slightly from last November while Social Assistance was the driver behind a decline in Health Care and Social Assistance. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services has shown notable growth, led by increases in engineering, design and other such technical services. These can be mainly attributed to large-scale projects underway in mining and oil and gas. (Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey – HRSDC SGEOIND & INDNL).
Economic Regions – Results were mixed across the province. While the labour force has grown on the Avalon Peninsula due to increases in St. John’s, it has decreased in the rest of the province. The Avalon was the only region to have a notable increase in employment while the number of jobs in the South Coast-Burin region is smaller than last November. Outside the Avalon, full-time job losses exceeded gains in part-time work. While two regions had a drop in their unemployment rate, this was due to a shrinking labour force rather than an employment increase.
- In the Avalon Peninsula, which includes the St. John’s area, the unemployment rate showed a small increase from 8.8% twelve months ago to 9.6% this November. The unemployment rate was higher because the labour force grew slightly faster than employment. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services, Construction and Public Administration showed notable gains from a year ago, while Trade showed the largest decline.
- The South Coast – Burin Peninsula region’s unemployment rate in November was 20.7%. This was an increase of 0.6 percentage points from a year ago. Employment losses exceeded a notable decline in the size of the labour force. Of note, the employment losses were full-time in nature. Job losses were mostly in the goods-producing sector. A local shipyard has been idle for a prolonged period and a fish plant in Marystown recently experienced a permanent closure after months of inactivity.
- In the West Coast – Northern Peninsula – Labrador region, the unemployment rate fell by 1.1 percentage points over the last twelve months to 13.8% as the labour force size decreased. Employment was relatively unchanged leaving fewer people looking for work.
- The unemployment rate for the Notre Dame – Central – Bonavista Bay region dropped by 1.4 percentage points due to a shrinking labour force. While employment levels were relatively stable compared to last November, the region has experienced an increase in part-time employment while full-time jobs have decreased. Construction has shown notable growth, while the largest losses were in Forestry, Fishing, Mining and Oil and Gas.
| Three Month Moving Averages Seasonally Unadjusted Data | Nov |
Nov 2010 | Variation | Nov |
Nov 2010 |
Variation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 1010 - Avalon Peninsula | ||||||
| Population 15+ ('000) | 428.5 | 428.6 | -0.1 | 221.1 | 219.4 | 1.7 | |
| Labour Force ('000) | 256.3 | 256.1 | 0.2 | 143.8 | 140.2 | 3.6 | |
| Employment ('000) | 225.2 | 224.9 | 0.3 | 130.0 | 127.9 | 2.1 | |
| Full-Time ('000) | 192.3 | 192.5 | -0.2 | 111.2 | 108.2 | 3.0 | |
| Part-Time ('000) | 32.9 | 32.3 | 0.6 | 18.8 | 19.7 | -0.9 | |
| Unemployment ('000) | 31.1 | 31.2 | -0.1 | 13.8 | 12.3 | 1.5 | |
| Participation Rate (%) | 59.8 | 59.8 | 0.0 | 65.0 | 63.9 | 1.1 | |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 12.1 | 12.2 | -0.1 | 9.6 | 8.8 | 0.8 | |
| Employment Rate (%) | 52.6 | 52.5 | 0.1 | 58.8 | 58.3 | 0.5 | |
| 1020 - South Coast - Burin Peninsula | 1030 - West Coast - Northern Peninsula - Labrador | ||||||
| Population 15+ ('000) | 30.4 | 30.9 | -0.5 | 86.6 | 87.2 | -0.6 | |
| Labour Force ('000) | 16.4 | 17.9 | -1.5 | 49.3 | 50.3 | -1.0 | |
| Employment ('000) | 13.0 | 14.3 | -1.3 | 42.6 | 42.9 | -0.3 | |
| Full-Time ('000) | 11.3 | 12.7 | -1.4 | 36.6 | 37.2 | -0.6 | |
| Part-Time ('000) | 1.7 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 6.0 | 5.7 | 0.3 | |
| Unemployment ('000) | 3.4 | 3.6 | -0.2 | 6.8 | 7.5 | -0.7 | |
| Participation Rate (%) | 53.9 | 57.9 | -4.0 | 56.9 | 57.7 | -0.8 | |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 20.7 | 20.1 | 0.6 | 13.8 | 14.9 | -1.1 | |
| Employment Rate (%) | 42.8 | 46.3 | -3.5 | 49.2 | 49.2 | 0.0 | |
| 1040 - Notre Dame - Central Bonavista Bay | St-John's Nfld. | ||||||
| Population 15+ ('000) | 90.5 | 91.1 | -0.6 | 161.4 | 160.0 | 1.4 | |
| Labour Force ('000) | 46.7 | 47.7 | -1.0 | 113.6 | 108.9 | 4.7 | |
| Employment ('000) | 40.8 | 42.1 | -1.3 | 105.8 | 102.6 | 3.2 | |
| Full-Time ('000) | 39.6 | 39.8 | -0.2 | 90.5 | 85.8 | 4.7 | |
| Part-Time ('000) | 6.3 | 5.4 | 0.9 | 15.4 | 16.0 | -0.6 | |
| Unemployment ('000) | 7.1 | 7.9 | -0.8 | 7.7 | 7.1 | 0.6 | |
| Participation Rate (%) | 51.6 | 52.4 | -0.8 | 70.4 | 68.1 | 2.3 | |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 15.2 | 16.6 | -1.4 | 6.8 | 6.5 | 0.3 | |
| Employment Rate (%) | 43.8 | 43.7 | 0.1 | 65.6 | 63.6 | 2.0 | |
| Notes: "--" indicates number suppressed due to high sample variance Total may not add due to rounding Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey – HRSDC Tables SGEODEM |
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For further information, please contact:
Jamie Grant
Economist
Labour Market Information Unit (NL), Service Canada
(709) 772-3165
jamie.grant@servicecanada.gc.ca
Please note that labour market news summaries are now available in separate publications for each region of the province, called the Labour Market Monitor.
About the Local Labour Market