Amid record-high immigration in the past year, newly-arrived immigrants of working age are finding it harder to land Canada jobs this year than in 2022 but their employment prospects are still better than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, reveals Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey for July 2023.
“In July, the employment rate of core-aged recent immigrants – those who had become landed immigrants in the previous five years – was 77.7 per cent, down 2.3 percentage points from July 2022( when that employment rate was 80 per cent).
“In comparison, the employment rate of those born in Canada was 86.6 per cent in July 2023, little changed from 12 months earlier.”
The employment rate for older immigrants, aged 55 years and up, has been holding steady.
And newly-arrived, core working-age immigrants are still doing better now than they were only a few years ago.
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“Despite the year-over-year decline, the employment rate of core-aged recent immigrants in July 2023 remained higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic; the average rate in July for this group from 2017 to 2019 was 70.8 per cent,” reports the national statistical and demographic services agency.
Across Canada, the employment rate stayed pretty much the same in July and the unemployment rate barely budged, rising only a tenth of a percentage point to 5.5 per cent.
There was a smidgeon more employment for young men and a tad less for middle-aged men that month.
“Employment fell among core-aged men aged 25 to 54 years old, down 27,000 jobs or 0.4 per cent, and increased among male youth aged 15 to 24, up 13,000 jobs or 0.9 per cent,” reports Statistics Canada.
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The employment rate, defined as the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who is employed, was 62 per cent in July, down 0.2 percentage points in the month and unchanged on a year-over-year basis.
The slight drop in the employment rate is due to people arriving in Canada faster than jobs can be created.
“From January to July, the employment rate fell 0.5 percentage points, as population growth of 1.4 per cent outpaced growth in employment of 0.7 per cent over this period,” noted Statistics Canada.
Unemployment Rose In July For Third Consecutive Month
The unemployment rate bump of 0.1 percentage points to 5.5 per cent in July is the third consecutive monthly increase, following increases of 0.2 per cent in both May and June.
“This was the first time the unemployment rate had increased for three consecutive months since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic,” notes Statistics Canada.
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In July, workers landed 25,000 more jobs in health care and social assistance, 19,000 in educational services, 15,000 in finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing and 12,000 in agriculture.
Five Industry Sectors Shed Jobs In July
The construction sector shed 45,000 jobs, public administration 17,000, information, culture and recreation 16,000, and transportation and warehousing 14,000.
Regionally, Alberta added 12,000 jobs, New Brunswick 4,200, and Prince Edward Island 1,500. The picture was not as pretty in the Prairies as Manitoba shed 6,400 jobs and Saskatchewan 5,700.
Wages Are Up Five Per Cent On A Year-Over-Year Basis
On a year-over-year basis, the average hourly wage rose five per cent in July and the total hours worked were virtually unchanged in that month although they were still up 2.1 per cent on a year-over-year basis.
Canadian employers hoping to attract workers through economic immigration can recruit them through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and the International Mobility Program (IMP).
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The Global Talent Stream (GTS), a part of the TFWP, can under normal processing situations lead to the granting of Canadian work permits and processing of visa applications within two weeks.
Employers can also bring in foreign nationals to fill available positions through the Express Entry system, which receives immigration applications online.
It powers the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST), and Canada Experience Class Program (CEC) which all draw from the Express Entry pool of candidates. Those with the required Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores are then sent Invitations to Apply (ITAs) in regular draws.
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