Summary: Canada’s job market has finally woken. Unemployment rate is at 6.5 per cent, the lowest since November 2008. Momentum is seeming to be building, but is this in fact what is happening?
In my opinion, I feel the low unemployment rate is a great sign for the economy, and the fact that the private sector led the growth is a reason to hope for recovery to finally be upon Canada. However, this may be a false hope as unused capacity (slack) is lingering in the market. With low participation rates, the unemployment rate could be a false representation of the economy recovering. While the job market was recently picked up, with 2/3 of the 1 per cent annual gain in employment coming in the last two months, there are still risks, among them the uncertainty of global growth and commodity prices rising. The most alarming aspect of this situation is the portion of youths working in full-time positions hit a record low last month.
Being a student myself, I can understand why this may be so. As a student, the main goal is to receive high-quality job prospects, and as a result higher education is required. Being employed as a youth is important, but without a proper education, that sought after position is far from achievable.
http://www.cpcml.ca/images2009/WorkersEconomy/CanadaLabourForceSurveyJan2009Employment.jpg
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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/canada-adds-43100-positions-as-jobless-rate-drops-to-65/article21493493/