Meanwhile, in demand roles are paying higher wages
New official data shows a decline in Canadian job vacancies, further evidence of the cooling labour market.
Vacancies declined in the first quarter of 2024 for four of the major occupational groups, most notably in sales and service occupations (-17,600; -8.6%). There were also declines in trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations (-7,800; -5.8%), occupations in education, law and social, community and government services (-3,200; -5.1%), and natural resources, agriculture and related production occupations (-1,700; -10.5%).
Statistics Canada’s latest report comes off the back of its labour market report on June 10 which revealed little change in employment while unemployment ticked higher and more people were working part time, but not from their choice.
The new data shows that vacancies in five occupational groups were flat with only natural and applied sciences and related occupations (+2,300; +5.1%) reporting an increase in vacancies. Overall, there was a decrease of 24,300 job vacancies in the first three months of 2024, a 3.6% decrease, to 648,600. Year-over-year, five of the groups also reported a decrease in vacancies that had not been filled for 90 days or more.
This was the seventh consecutive quarterly decline since the second quarter of 2022 when there were almost one million jobs available, a record high. The decline seen in Q1 2024 was mostly in permanent, full time roles.
This all means that there were two unemployed people for every job vacancy in the first quarter and the unemployment-to-job vacancy ratio has been increasing every quarter since Q3 2022.
The decline in job vacancies was noted across Manitoba (-8.7% to 22,400), New Brunswick (-8.1% to 11,200), Quebec (-6.4% to 153,000), Saskatchewan (-5.9% to 21,900), Alberta (-4.8% to 77,100) and British Columbia (-4.4% to 105,800). But the Northwest Territories (+24.8% to 1,400) and Prince Edward Island (+20.5% to 3,000) posted increased vacancies with the remaining regions little changed.
Wages rise
Meanwhile, the data shows that the average offered hourly wage for vacant positions grew 7.3% in the first quarter of 2024 to $27.25. This was a faster pace than in the last quarter of 2023 (+5.8% to $26.35) and the first quarter of 2023 (+5.0% to $25.40).
Average hourly wages for all employees were up 5.1%, slightly above the 5% pace in Q4 2023 (not seasonally adjusted).
A shift towards higher paid jobs drove the increase, with the largest gains for central control and process operators and aircraft assemblers and inspectors (+20.5% to $37.10) and processing, manufacturing and utilities supervisors and utilities operators and controllers (+9.5% to $35.10).
