Post by IAMCAPER on Jun 14, 2005 8:11:48 GMT -4
Cape Breton's unemployment rate is higher than the provincial! Wow!
While Nova Scotia is boasting its best employment figures in a generation, Cape Breton lags behind with an unemployment rate much higher than the provincial number. Statistics Canada reports the unemployment rate in Nova Scotia fell to 7.7 per cent in May. Averaged out over three months, the rate was 8.9 per cent.
But in Cape Breton, the three-month moving average was 14.2 per cent, although that did show an improvement from the April figure of 16.9 per cent.
The island’s rate for May 2004 was 15.8 per cent.
John Whalley, economic development manager with the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, believes the improvement in the island’s unemployment rate is occurring for the wrong reasons. He noted that between May 2004 and May 2005, the island’s labour force was reduced by about 1,100 people, something he attributed largely to outmigration.
“The big reason for the reduction in the unemployment rate in Cape Breton is really the decline in the labour force,” he said.
“That’s a very big reduction. We’re one of the few regions in Atlantic Canada and all of Canada that’s reporting fairly consistent reductions in working age population, that’s really what’s happening.
“I think people are leaving Cape Breton and we still have among the lowest employment rates in the country.”
The labour force participation rate for Cape Breton was 53.3 per cent in May, compared with 70.1 per cent in Halifax and 63.4 per cent for the province as a whole.
While disparities across provinces are being reduced, Whalley argued disparities within provinces are actually growing.
“There’s still huge disparities in the number of people employed here, and it’s not always reflected in the unemployment rate, because of the low labour force participation rate,” Whalley said.
Scott MacKenzie, labour market analyst with Human Resources Skills Development Canada, noted the island normally sees some sort of seasonal upswing in employment at this time of year, as the food and tourism industries, fishing and construction ramp up. The labour force, which normally sees an increase at this time of year, didn’t increase to the level that employment rose, he said.
That could be due to people leaving the island, but the decline in the work age population could also be partially attributed to retirements, he noted.
“Bear in mind, the sample size is small, they use a three-month moving average in Cape Breton just to shore up the numbers,” MacKenzie said, adding the employment levels are about where they were last year.
Provincially the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 7.7 per cent was the lowest since March 1976, with 3,200 new jobs created in Nova Scotia in May.
Premier John Hamm said in a news release his government is working to keep positive momentum going all over the province, and he noted that strengthening regional economies is one of the key strategies in Nova Scotia’s growth strategy.
According to Statistics Canada, over the last five years, more people are working in every region of the province, he noted.
While Nova Scotia is boasting its best employment figures in a generation, Cape Breton lags behind with an unemployment rate much higher than the provincial number. Statistics Canada reports the unemployment rate in Nova Scotia fell to 7.7 per cent in May. Averaged out over three months, the rate was 8.9 per cent.
But in Cape Breton, the three-month moving average was 14.2 per cent, although that did show an improvement from the April figure of 16.9 per cent.
The island’s rate for May 2004 was 15.8 per cent.
John Whalley, economic development manager with the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, believes the improvement in the island’s unemployment rate is occurring for the wrong reasons. He noted that between May 2004 and May 2005, the island’s labour force was reduced by about 1,100 people, something he attributed largely to outmigration.
“The big reason for the reduction in the unemployment rate in Cape Breton is really the decline in the labour force,” he said.
“That’s a very big reduction. We’re one of the few regions in Atlantic Canada and all of Canada that’s reporting fairly consistent reductions in working age population, that’s really what’s happening.
“I think people are leaving Cape Breton and we still have among the lowest employment rates in the country.”
The labour force participation rate for Cape Breton was 53.3 per cent in May, compared with 70.1 per cent in Halifax and 63.4 per cent for the province as a whole.
While disparities across provinces are being reduced, Whalley argued disparities within provinces are actually growing.
“There’s still huge disparities in the number of people employed here, and it’s not always reflected in the unemployment rate, because of the low labour force participation rate,” Whalley said.
Scott MacKenzie, labour market analyst with Human Resources Skills Development Canada, noted the island normally sees some sort of seasonal upswing in employment at this time of year, as the food and tourism industries, fishing and construction ramp up. The labour force, which normally sees an increase at this time of year, didn’t increase to the level that employment rose, he said.
That could be due to people leaving the island, but the decline in the work age population could also be partially attributed to retirements, he noted.
“Bear in mind, the sample size is small, they use a three-month moving average in Cape Breton just to shore up the numbers,” MacKenzie said, adding the employment levels are about where they were last year.
Provincially the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 7.7 per cent was the lowest since March 1976, with 3,200 new jobs created in Nova Scotia in May.
Premier John Hamm said in a news release his government is working to keep positive momentum going all over the province, and he noted that strengthening regional economies is one of the key strategies in Nova Scotia’s growth strategy.
According to Statistics Canada, over the last five years, more people are working in every region of the province, he noted.