Prince Edward Island Labour Market Brief
September 2011
| Monthly Variation | Yearly Variation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seasonally Adjusted Monthly Data | Sept 2011 | August 2011 | Sept 2010 | Number | Percent | Number | Percent |
| Population 15+ | 119.6 | 119.7 | 117.3 | -0.1 | -0.1 | 2.3 | 2.0 |
| Labour Force | 82.6 | 81.3 | 79.9 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 2.7 | 3.4 |
| Employment | 73.3 | 72.0 | 69.1 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 4.2 | 6.1 |
| Full-Time | 61.7 | 60.1 | 56.5 | 1.6 | 2.7 | 5.2 | 9.2 |
| Part-Time | 11.6 | 11.9 | 12.6 | -0.3 | -2.5 | -1.0 | -7.9 |
| Unemployment | 9.4 | 9.3 | 10.7 | 0.1 | 1.1 | -1.3 | -12.1 |
| Participate Rate (%) | 69.1 | 67.9 | 68.1 | 1.2 | - | 1.0 | - |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 11.4 | 11.4 | 13.4 | 0.0 | - | -0.2 | - |
| Employment Rate (%) | 61.3 | 60.2 | 58.9 | 1.1 | - | 2.4 | - |
| Total may not add due to rounding Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey |
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Both the labour force and employment expanded by the same amount in September and the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 11.4%. With more people having entered the labour market in September, the participation rate in PEI rose to 69.1%.
Labour Market Highlights:
- There were a total of 82,600 persons in the labour force in September, an all-time high in the province. This is an increase of 3.4% over September 2010.
- The employment base in PEI rose by 4,200 compared to the previous year and all of the gains were concentrated in full-time jobs. Women accounted for the majority of employment gains in September.
- The level of unemployment declined by 1,300 persons on a year-over-year basis and the unemployment rate fell two percentage points to 11.4% in September.
- With more people entering the labour force in September, the participation rate increased to 69.1% in September. This is one percentage point higher than it was in September 2010. Participation of youths (i.e. persons 15-24 years of age) rose considerably on a year-over-year basis, to 73.4% in September 2011 which is up by 5.7 percentage points. The participation rate in PEI ranked in the top three compared to the rest of the country, and exceeded that national average by 2.3 percentage points.
| Monthly Variation | Yearly Variation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2011 | August 2011 | Sept 2010 | Number | % | Number | % | |
| Total | 73.3 | 72.0 | 69.1 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 4.2 | 6.1 |
| Goods Producing Sector | 17.4 | 17.7 | 15.9 | -0.3 | -1.7 | 1.5 | 9.4 |
| Agriculture | 3.6 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 24.1 |
| Forestry, fishing, mining, oil and gas | 3.3 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 13.8 |
| Utilities | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Construction | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.7 | -0.1 | -2.0 | 0.1 | 2.1 |
| Manufacturing | 5.3 | 5.6 | 5.2 | -0.3 | -5.4 | 0.1 | 1.9 |
| Service Producing Sector | 55.9 | 54.3 | 53.3 | 1.6 | 2.9 | 2.6 | 4.9 |
| Trade | 10.6 | 9.6 | 9.4 | 1.0 | 10.4 | 1.2 | 12.8 |
| Transportation and Warehousing | 2.5 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 4.2 | 0.6 | 31.6 |
| Finance, insurance, real estate and leasing | 2.7 | 2.8 | 2.5 | -0.1 | -3.6 | 0.2 | 8.0 |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 3.2 | 3.6 | 2.9 | -0.4 | -11.1 | 0.3 | 10.3 |
| Management, Administrative and other support services | 2.4 | 2.2 | 2.8 | 0.2 | 9.1 | -0.4 | -14.3 |
| Educational Services | 6.6 | 6.6 | 5.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 13.8 |
| Health care and social assistance | 9.1 | 8.4 | 9.0 | 0.7 | 8.3 | 0.1 | 1.1 |
| Information culture and recreation | 2.7 | 2.6 | 3.0 | 0.1 | 3.8 | -0.3 | 10.0 |
| Accommodations and food services | 5.2 | 5.4 | 5.0 | -0.2 | -3.7 | 0.2 | 4.0 |
| Other Services | 3.3 | 3.1 | 29 | 0.2 | 6.5 | 0.4 | 13.8 |
| Public Administration | 7.8 | 7.6 | 7.9 | 0.2 | 2.6 | -0.1 | -1.3 |
| "-" indicates number suppressed due to high sample variance Total may not add due to rounding Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey |
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Industry Highlights:
Goods-producing sector
- Goods-sector employment totalled 17,400 in September, which is an increase of 1,500 (or nearly 10%) compared to the same month last year.
- The gains were largely concentrated in the primary industries: agriculture (+700 or +24%) and forestry and fishing, mining, oil and gas (+400).
The employment estimates for agriculture may be subject to statistical variation and therefore, should be viewed with caution. For example, in Q3 2010, employment estimates were unusually low which makes the year-over-year growth higher than what may actually be the case.
Services-producing sector
- The service-sector accounted for the majority of year-over-year employment gains in the province.
- The highlights were in the trade and education industries. Employment in trade increased to 10,600 which was up 12.8% over September 2010. Employment in educational services is also shown to have increased considerably, year-over-year, by 800 persons.
- There were fewer jobs in management and admin services; information, culture and recreation; and in public administration.
Prepared by: Labour Market and Socio-economic Information Directorate, Maritime Region
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