For the second consecutive month of good news on the employment front, there was an increase of 55,900 net new, full-time positions in Canada in February. In January, the gain was 66,800 new jobs. This was the strongest two-month gain since early 2012.
February’s gain was lead by an increase of 46,200 jobs in the service sector lead by professional, scientific and technical services, public administration and wholesale and retail trade. In the goods-producing sector, there were an extra 9,500 new jobs due to gains in natural resources, agriculture and manufacturing.
The biggest job gains were in the central province of Ontario.
Unemployment numbers remained the same as more people looked for work. (iStock)
Unemployment the same, wages up
Even though there was an increase in jobs in February, the unemployment rate remained at 5.8 per cent because more people were looking for work.
Hourly wage growth in February was 2.3 per cent, up from 1.8 per cent in January.
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