For the fourth month in a row, the London area jobless rate has gone up.
Figures released Friday by Statistics Canada show the unemployment rate in the London Census Metropolitan Area, which includes St. Thomas, Strathroy, and other surrounding communities, was 6.6 per cent in August. It was 6.1 per cent in July.
According to the federal agency, the London area lost roughly 2,200 jobs last month. In all, 292,700 people in the area were considered employed in August.
Ontario’s jobless rate also rose last month, climbing from 5.3 per cent to 5.7 per cent.
The national economy lost 40,000 net positions, leading to an increase in the national jobless rate of half a percentage point to 5.4 per cent. Most of those losses were among workers aged 15-to-24 and women 55 and older.
While there were gains in some service sectors, the sciences, and technical services, losses in construction and educational services offset those.
August’s Labour Force Survey asked students how many were leaving work to return to school. The percentage was on par with past years at 55.6 per cent.
It also asked how many workers planned to leave their positions to retire by the end of the year. That figure was 307,000, up from 233,000 last year and 273,000 in 2019.
August’s survey found that almost 12 per cent of workers plan to leave their job within the next 12 months, up from just 5.5 per cent in January.
These factors suggest the labour market continues to tighten, and the Canadian Survey on Business Challenges, conducted in the third quarter, said two-fifths of businesses expect recruitment for skilled jobs to remain an obstacle. That is despite an increase in the number of Canadians seeking work, up 106,000 in August since June. Canada currently has 989,000 unemployed and 1,038,000 vacancies.
The total number of hours worked was unchanged from July, when it slipped 0.5 per cent. However, year over year, that climbed by 3.7 per cent.
Canadians continue to earn more. The survey said the average hourly wage increased 5.4 per cent from last August after gains in June and July.
**with files from Adelle Loiselle
