Articles : Canadian economy added 259,000 jobs in February, recovering most job losses in the previous two months

Statistics Canada says the economy added 259,000 jobs last month, which recovers most of the jobs lost (266,000) in the previous two months.

The gains are due to increases in industries like retail trade and accommodation and food services, which were the industries most hit by public health measures back in December and January. As a result of increases in these industries, there were gains in part-time work at 5.4% (171,000).

The number of self-employed workers was little changed for the second consecutive month. It was down by 7.4% (213,000) compared to 12 months earlier.

The number of Canadians working from home declined in February by 200,000. Among workers who worked at least half of their usual hours, the number working at locations other than their home increased by 600,000 as schools and other workplaces re-opened.

Employment in “other services” were up the first time since September. Personal care industries like hairdressers increased by 3.8% (28,000) in February.

Professional scientific and technical services were also higher last month than a year earlier. While employment in these industries was little changed in February, employment for theses sectors was higher by 5.6% around this time last year. This was the largest year-over-year increase across all industries.

The unemployment rate fell by 1.2% to 8.2% last month, the lowest rate since March 2020.

References:
Statistics​ Canada