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Monthly Labour Market Graphic

The latest Statistics Canada local labour market report customized for the Brantford CMA for last month is now available.

May Unemployment Rate: Brantford 4.1% [-] Ontario 5.5% [+] Canada 5.2% [+]

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.

Labour Market Report

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

Highlights

Overall employment was little changed in May, as employment fell by 77,000 (-2.8%) for youth aged 15 to 24, and it increased by 63,000 (+0.5%) among people aged 25 to 54.

The unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 5.2%—the first increase since August 2022.

Employment declined in Ontario (-24,000; -0.3%), Nova Scotia (-5,200; -1.0%), and Newfoundland and Labrador (-4,200; -1.8%) in May 2023, while it increased in Manitoba (+8,200; +1.2%). There was little change in the other provinces.

There were fewer people employed in business, building and other support services (-31,000; -4.4%), as well in professional, scientific and technical services (-13,000; -0.7%). Employment increased in manufacturing (+13,000; +0.7%), "other services" (+11,000; +1.5%) and utilities (+4,200; +2.7%).

Total hours worked fell 0.4% in May, but were up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis.

On a year-over-year basis, average hourly wages rose 5.1% (+$1.61 to $33.25) in May (not seasonally adjusted).

The employment rate of First Nations people living off reserve, aged 25 to 54, was 67.4% in May, down 5.0 percentage points from a year earlier. Among Métis of the same age group, the employment rate was 80.0% in May, down slightly from a year earlier (82.2%) (three-month moving averages).

Employment little changed in May as growth moderates

Overall employment was virtually unchanged in May (-17,000; -0.1%). Employment growth has moderated in recent months and monthly increases averaged 33,000 from February to April. This followed strong employment gains totalling 326,000 from September 2022 to January 2023.

The employment rate—the percentage of people aged 15 and older who are employed—declined by 0.3 percentage points to 62.1% in May. This reflected strong population growth in the month (+83,000) and little change in employment.

The number of employees held steady in the private and public sector, while there was a decline in the number of self-employed workers (-40,000; -1.5%).

Fewer youth aged 15 to 24 employed

Among all youth aged 15 to 24, including students and non-students, employment fell by 77,000 (-2.8%) in May, with declines observed for young women (-43,000; -3.2%) and young men (-35,000; -2.5%). The decline in the month partially offset a net increase of 99,000 recorded from November 2022 to April 2023. On a year-over-year basis, youth employment was little changed in May.

Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates are seasonally adjusted to remove seasonal patterns in the monthly data. Typically, employment increases for youth in May. The unadjusted increase in youth employment this May was less than usual, resulting in a seasonally-adjusted employment decline.

The youth employment rate was 57.6% in May, down 2.0 percentage points from the recent high of 59.6% reached in March and April, and offsetting a net increase of 1.9 percentage points recorded from September 2022 to April 2023. The youth employment rate in May fell 1.8 percentage points on a year-over-year basis, and was comparable to the pre-COVID-19 pandemic average from 2017 to 2019 (58.2%

Local Top Line

  • May Unemployment Rate: Brantford 4.1% [-] Ontario 5.5% [+] Canada 5.2% [+]
  • The local unemployment rate decreased by 0.9 month over month.
  • The local labour force contracted by 1,200 month over month.
  • The number of employed decreased by 400 month over month.
  • The number of unemployed decreased by 800 month over month.
  • When compared to the surrounding CMAs of Hamilton, Niagara, Waterloo, Guelph, and London, Brantford’s unemployment rate is second lowest.

Note:  Brantford's unemployment reflects a 3 month moving average, whereas Ontario and Canada are monthly figures.  The sample CMA breakdown for Brantford area is detailed in text at the Stats Canada website:  http://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p3VD.pl?Function=getVD&TVD=117159&CVD=117161&CPV=543&CST=01012011&CLV=2&MLV=3