Labour Market Monitor - Cape Breton
October 2010
This is an overview of the Cape Breton Region which includes Cape Breton, Inverness, Richmond and Victoria Counties. The Labour Market Monitor is a monthly report providing information on labour market developments for specific regions within the province.
Labour Force Trends
The labour market in Cape Breton expanded from October 2009 to October 2010. The labour force grew by 2,300 on a year-over-year basis. Employment increased by 1,000 over the same period, with a decrease in part time employment of 200 more than offset by an increase of 1,200 full time jobs. With labour force growth outpacing employment growth, the level of unemployment rose from October 2009 to October 2010. The unemployment rate now stands at 15.1 percent, up from 13.6 percent last year.
For more information, please visit the Statistics Canada website at: www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/lfss05b-eng.htm
| Cape Breton | October | |
|---|---|---|
| Region: 210 | 2009 | 2010 |
| Labour Force (000) | 64.6 | 66.9 |
| Employed (000) | 55.8 | 56.8 |
| Full Time | 46.0 | 47.2 |
| Part Time | 9.8 | 9.6 |
| Unemployed (000) | 8.8 | 10.1 |
| Participation Rate (%) | 56.3 | 58.6 |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 13.6 | 15.1 |
| Data is 3 month moving average from the Labour Force Survey, Statistics Canada | ||
Labour Market News by Industry
Business, Building & Other Support Services
Stream Global Services of Glace Bay has secured a contract with Rogers for technical support for their Blackberry Smart Phones. Stream will hire 150 people now and 200 to 250 in 2011. The positions include team managers, quality representatives, technical support staff and other support department staff. Cape Breton Post, October 21, 2010
The Venture Solutions Business Tech Centre in Sydport is now near capacity in less than a year after opening. The business-tech incubator mall now house 10 businesses employing approximately 40 people. Cape Breton Post, October 7, 2010
Transportation
East Coast Airways announced that it will launch its new regional airline in November, 2010. The airline will offer flights to and from Halifax from Sydney, Yarmouth, Saint John and Charlottetown. The airline is basing its fares on fixed prices and will be using five 19 passenger BAE Jetstream 31 turboprop airplanes. Cape Breton Post, October 20, 2010
Westjet will examine the local market to determine whether it's an area where it may like to expand its service. For the past two years Westjet has operated a seasonal service in Sydney, which wraps up at the end of October. Cape Breton Post, October 15, 2010
The province has extended a subsidy to Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway that will enable the railway to operate until at least the end of September 2011. There will also be a working group set up to attempt to build traffic on the Cape Breton section of the line. Cape Breton Post, October 29, 2010
Manufacturing
The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board has conditionally approved the $208 million biomass project involving New Page Port Hawkesbury and Nova Scotia Power Inc. that would see wood burned to produce electricity at New page's Point Tupper mill site. The biomass facility would generate about 60 megawatts of electricity a year and use 650,000 tonnes of forest biomass annually, which is more than twice what the mill uses in making paper. NSPI would invest $200 million in the project, while New Page would construct and operate it as well as supply fuel. It is expected to create 150 new forestry jobs and construction would involve 50 person years of employment. The facility is expected to be in production in 2012. Cape Breton Post, October 15, 2010
Eyking Farms of Millville has opened a new fresh vegetable packaging facility. The new 4500 square foot Green Atlantic packaging and processing facility created nearly a dozen seasonal jobs for local student and other workers this past summer. Cape Breton Post, October 19, 2010
Agriculture
The Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture is partnering with the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration to attract immigrant farmers to rural Nova Scotia. Funding of $260,000 from the Community Development Trust will be used to attract new producers to set up farming operations in Nova Scotia. The project also includes developing agricultural sector profiles, a website and a database of available farmland in the province. Inverness Oran, October 1, 2010
Construction
Hazco Environmental Services has been awarded a $19.1 million contract to build a protective cap on top of treated material at the Sydney Tar Ponds site. Construction will begin soon and will take approximately three years to complete. The capping work is expected to create about 30 local jobs. Cape Breton Post, October 26, 2010
Miscellaneous
The minimum wage in Nova Scotia rose by 4.9% to $9.65 per hour for experienced workers. The rate for inexperienced workers rose to $9.15. Cape Breton Post, October 1 2010
Note: In preparing this document, Service Canada has taken care to provide clients with labour market information from reliable sources that is timely and accurate at the time of publication. Since labour market conditions are dynamic, some of the information presented here may have changed since this document was published. Users are encouraged to also refer to other sources for additional information on the local economy and labour market. Information contained in this document does not necessarily reflect official policies of Service Canada.For more information contact: ns-info-ne@servicecanada.gc.ca or visit our website at www.labourmarketinformation.ca