Labour Market Monitor - Cape Breton
December 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 deteriorated from December 2009 to December 2010. Employment fell by 1,000 over the period, although this decrease reflected an increase in full time work that was more than offset by a drop in part time employment. With a relatively stable labour force, the level of unemployment rose on a year over year basis, and the unemployment rate increased to 15.7% this month compared to 14.2% for the same month last year.
For more information, please visit the Statistics Canada website at: www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/lfss05b-eng.htm
| Cape Breton | December | |
|---|---|---|
| Region: 210 | 2009 | 2010 |
| Labour Force (000) | 63.3 | 63.5 |
| Employed (000) | 54.3 | 53.3 |
| Full Time | 42.2 | 44.1 |
| Part Time | 12.1 | 9.2 |
| Unemployed (000) | 9.0 | 9.9 |
| Participation Rate (%) | 55.2 | 55.5 |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 14.2 | 15.7 |
| Data is 3 month moving average from the Labour Force Survey, Statistics Canada | ||
Labour Market News by Industry
Construction
The federal government announced a contribution of $19 million in funding to the dredging of the Sydney Harbour access channel. The funding completes the estimated $38 million needed for the project to proceed. The dredging project is expected to provide 100,000 person hours of employment. Once completed, it will support potential opportunities for container and shipbuilding and repair facilities, offshore oil and gas related fabrication as well as other marine related business. Cape Breton Post, December 11, 2010.
The Department of National Defence has awarded a contract for $2.8 million to B. Curry & Sons Construction Limited for the removal and disposal of approximately 30,000 tonnes of contaminated soil at the former CFS Sydney, now known as Pine Tree Park in Sydney. The work is expected to be completed by the spring of 2011. The work is a component of the storage tank remediation project at the former radar base, which will be completed by 2013. Cape Breton Post, December 11, 2010
Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation outlined plans for a proposed mine water treatment plant to be located in New Victoria. The $5 million to $10 million plant would treat mine water from abandoned collieries in New Waterford, New Victoria and Sydney Mines. Construction of the proposed facility would likely start in the spring of 2011 and be commissioned in early 2012.
Oil & Gas
Petroworth Resources announced that it will delay its plan to drill for oil and gas near Lake Ainslie until the spring or early summer of 2011. Cape Breton Post, December 1, 2010
Transportation
East Coast Airways ceased operations December 28, 2010. The company had been operation for three weeks and had run about a dozen flights between Halifax and Sydney. East Coast Airways began flight operations out of Sydney Airport on November 30, 2010. The new carrier intended to service the Maritime Provinces with about 20 flights a day using five 19 passenger turboprop airplanes. The company employed 46 people in the Maritimes. Cape Breton Post, December 1, 2010, Chronicle Herald December 30, 2010.
Business, Building and Other Support Services
Approximately 40 workers at the Aditya Birla Minacs call centre in Port Hawkesbury have been issued layoff notices. The company attributed the layoffs to a lack of work on the books. The layoffs take effect at the end of December 2010. Cape Breton Post, December 23, 2010
Manufacturing
Laurentian Steel Fabricators started work on a contract to construct seven aluminum hull frames for a Halifax company building pollution response vessels for the Canadian Coast Guard. The work began last month and will result in work for 12 Laurentian employees until February, 2011. Cape Breton Post, December 2, 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