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The latest Statistics Canada local labour market report customized for the Brantford CMA for last month is now available.
- February Unemployment Rate: Brantford 4.9% [=] Ontario 6.5% [+] Canada 5.8% [+]
Be sure to review the participation rate and the employment rate (reported as percentages), as well as the labour force, the employed, and the unemployed values (reported as absolute numbers). These give a better picture of changes in the market.
The report includes annual rates for the last 10 years, comparing Brantford to surrounding CMAs as well as the provincial and national levels.
Overview from Statistics Canada
- Visit the Statistics Canada page for full information.
Employment rose by 41,000 in February. The employment rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to 61.5%, as population growth (+0.3%) continued to outpace employment growth (+0.2%).
The unemployment rate increased 0.1 percentage points to 5.8%, offsetting a decline in January.
Employment increased among core-aged (25 to 54 years old) women (+45,000; +0.7%) and men (+23,000; +0.3%). At the same time, there were fewer women aged 55 and older employed (-29,000; -1.4%).
Employment increased in Alberta (+17,000; +0.7%) and Nova Scotia (+6,300; +1.2%), while it declined in Manitoba (-5,300; -0.7%). There was little change in the other provinces.
Employment gains were spread across several industries in the services-producing sector, led by accommodation and food services (+26,000; +2.4%) and professional, scientific, and technical services (+18,000; +0.9%). There were declines in other industries, led by educational services (-17,000; -1.1%) and manufacturing (-14,000; -0.8%).
Total hours worked in February were little changed in the month (+0.3%) but were up 1.3% compared with 12 months earlier.
Average hourly wages among employees rose 5.0% on a year-over-year basis in February (+$1.66 to $34.82), following an increase of 5.3% in January (not seasonally adjusted).
Employment gains continue to be outpaced by population growth
Employment rose by 41,000 (+0.2%) in February, following a similar-sized increase in January (+37,000). In February, employment growth was driven by an increase in full-time work (+71,000; +0.4%). On a year-over-year basis, full-time work was up by 260,000 (+1.6%) in February, while part-time work was up by 108,000 (+3.0%).
The employment rate—the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who are employed—fell by 0.1 percentage points to 61.5% in February. This was the fifth consecutive monthly decline, the longest period of consecutive decreases since the six-month period ending in April 2009. The employment rate in February 2024 was down 0.9 percentage points from the recent peak of 62.4% observed in February 2023. This downward trend is associated with rapid population growth, which has outpaced employment growth in the past year.
Employment increased by 38,000 (+1.5%) among self-employed workers in February 2024, the first monthly increase since August 2023. There was little change in the number of public and private sector employees in the month. From February 2023 to February 2024, employment grew at a faster pace for public sector employees (+197,000; +4.7%) than for private sector employees (+160,000; +1.2%), while self-employment was little changed over the period (+11,000; +0.4%).
Local Top Line
- February Unemployment Rate: Brantford 4.9% [=] Ontario 6.5% [+] Canada 5.8% [+]
- The local unemployment rate remained the same month over month.
- The local labour force expanded by 300 month over month.
- The number of employed increased by 300 month over month.
- The number of unemployed did not change month over month.
- When compared to the surrounding CMAs of Hamilton, Niagara, Waterloo, Guelph, and London, Brantford’s unemployment rate remains second lowest.
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