Canadian job vacancies climb to new record, signalling more inflation pressure
Employers were actively recruiting for more than one million vacant positions for the third consecutive month
Job vacancies set a new record in June, indicating that a tight labour market remains a source of inflationary pressure, as employers were actively recruiting for more than one million vacant positions for the third consecutive month.
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Statistics Canada reported Aug. 25 that there were 1,037,900 unfilled positions in June, up from 1,005,700 in May. The vacancy rate, which measures unfilled positions as a percentage of total positions, was 5.9 per cent, matching the record high recorded in September 2021.
Meanwhile, the unemployment-to-job-vacancy ratio dropped to a record low of 1.0 in June. This means there was one unemployed person for each vacant job, suggesting employers have nearly exhausted the pool of readily available talent for the work on offer.
Total labour demand, which accounts for both filled and vacant positions, also reached a record high of nearly 17.7 million, 9.4 per cent higher than in the previous year.
Statistics Canada said seasonal patterns were not attributable for the recent month-over-month increases in job vacancies and its new data without seasonal variations show an upward trend since December 2020.
The agency said the number of vacancies remained elevated in several sectors, including construction and manufacturing, with more than 80,000 vacancies reported in each industry. The health care and social assistance sector remained at record-high levels first reached in March, with 149,700 unfilled positions in June – up 40.8 per cent from the same month last year.
High vacancy rates are inflationary because they put upward pressure on wages, as employers are forced to offer higher wages and salaries to get the talent they need to keep up with orders. Average weekly earnings outpaced the growth seen in May, posting a 3.5 per cent year-over-year increase in June and extending an upward trend that started a year ago, Statistics Canada said.
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