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Canada’s streak of hot hiring months is about to face its toughest test in some time.
What happened: Canada gained 55,000 net new jobs in December, according to new Statistics Canada data, bringing the unemployment rate down to 5.9% (slightly above the pre-pandemic level of 5.7%).
- Most of the gains came in goods-producing sectors (like construction) and were concentrated in Ontario and Saskatchewan.
What’s next: While the economy added a record 885,000 jobs in 2021, economic restrictions in response to the spread of Omicron might pose a challenge for job growth in the coming months.
- Statistics Canada noted that the data collected for December 2021 reflected the early weeks of the month, when COVID restrictions across the country were relatively lax, and acknowledged that new limits imposed since then would translate into worse job numbers for January 2022.
- This impact is already being felt, with Cineplex announcing yesterday that they would “temporarily lay off” 5,000 workers in Ontario following the mandated closure of theatres in the province.
Zoom out: There’s uncertainty around how employers will respond to new lockdowns. Rules are as or more strict in some provinces than previous waves, but with job vacancies at record highs, businesses may decide to keep workers on their payroll rather than struggle to recruit new employees once lockdowns end.
