If it looks like there are fewer summer jobs for students, that’s because it’s true according to the latest employment numbers for June.That’s because Canada’s unemployment rate is creeping back up after the pandemic, led by young people and students to the highest levels in more than a decade, excluding the pandemic.According to Statistics Canada, the overall unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 6.4% in June. That’s the highest level since January, 2022..Alberta’s unemployment was relatively unchanged at 7.1% and is among the highest in country outside the Maritimes. Calgary’s rate was up almost half a point to 8.5% while Edmonton came in at 7.1%.The unemployment rate among returning students was 15.9% in June 2024, and was up 3.8 percentage points from a year earlier. “This indicates that students are facing more difficulties finding work as they enter the summer job market,” StatsCan said in a news release.Youth tend to benefit from a tighter job market when the economy is doing good. Overall, unemployment has trended up 1.3 percentage points since April 2023. There were 1.4 million unemployed people in June 2024, an increase of 42,000 (+3.1%) from the previous month..As the unemployment rate has increased, so too has the proportion of long-term unemployed, StatsCan said.. Among the unemployed, 17.6% had been continuously unemployed for 27 weeks or more in June 2024, up 4.0 percentage points from a year earlier.Older people were more likely to be in long-term unemployment; 22.0% of unemployed people aged 55 and older had been continuously unemployed for 27 weeks or more in June. In comparison, the proportion was 19.3% for those in the core-aged group and 12.2% for youth.On the bright side, average hourly wages were up 5.4% (+$1.79 to $34.91) in June, following growth of 5.1% in May. Average hourly wages were up by 5.2% (+$1.62 to $32.57) among women and 5.5% (+$1.92 to $37.13) among men.The report noted some structural longer term trends. employment in the services and hospitality sector was up while agriculture was down..Though the proportion of people working from home has trended downwards following the lifting of most pandemic-related public health restrictions in 2022, some of the labour market trends associated with telework remain.In June 2024, the proportion of employees who usually worked most of their hours from home was 15.1%, down from 21.5% in June 2022. Although it’s down, the number is higher than longterm averages."This report drives home the point that the Canadian labour market can simply no longer be considered tight — in fact, it is quickly tipping in the other direction," wrote BMO economist Douglas Porter in a note.Analysts said the weaker job numbers bolster the case for an interest cut later this summer to kickstart the economy.“As a stand-alone result, the softening job market raises the odds of a Bank of Canada rate cut. However, wages remain the very definition of sticky, which will give the bank pause,” Porter added..The federal Conservatives said the latest numbers are an indictment of the Liberal government.As a result of 42,000 extra Canadians became unemployed in June, there now being 1.4 million Canadians being unemployed in total, it said in a statement. The state of Canada’s economy is even worse when population growth is taken into account. In June, Canada’s population grew by 98,700 people, while employment remained virtually unchanged. Previously, Statistics Canada has made clear that 50,000 jobs are needed each month just to keep up with population growth. “Under Justin Trudeau, Canada’s economy can no longer keep up with our population, meaning fewer opportunities for everyone. Among those most affected by this are young Canadians. As the Governor of the Bank of Canada, Tiff Macklem, said in a speech, “with fewer job vacancies, it’s taking longer for young people entering the labour market to find a job, and their unemployment rate has risen. It's now about 2 percentage points above its pre-pandemic average.”
