February 2024 employment numbers show the Brantford area labour market continues to be a bit of an anomaly compared to some of its neighbours, as well as Ontario and Canada.
To begin with, the Brantford-Brant jobless rate was unchanged in February, at 4.9%, while it increased in Hamilton, St. Catharines-Niagara, London, Ontario and Canada, according to Statistics Canada’s seasonally adjusted figures released Friday.
Canada’s jobless rate inched up to 5.8%, despite 41,000 job gains, while Ontario’s climbed to 6.5%.
Within a one-hour commute, only Guelph had a lower February unemployment rate than Brantford. And only Brantford has seen a jobless rate below 5% for 6 months straight.
“It’s tricky comparing the labour markets of communities, since each have some unique characteristics, types of employers and workers,” said Danette Dalton, the Planning Board’s executive director. “Still, it’s a strength that Brantford has been able to buck some trends for months.”
A second anomaly in Brantford’s labour market over the last six months has been the relationship between population growth and employment growth, Dalton said.
The main storyline regarding the labour force for months nationally and provincially has been that population growth has outpaced employment growth. Since August, Canada’s working age population (those who are 15+ in age) has swelled by 527,000, while employment has grown by 183,000.
Ontario’s working age population has grown by 236,000 since August, but employment is only up 4,400, according to Statistics Canada’s February 2024 employment numbers.
Among neighbouring labour markets, only Brantford and Guelph have had employment gains above their population growth. Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo job gains match population growth, but Hamilton, London and St. Catharines-Niagara have lagged behind.
“It’s a positive that Brantford’s employment gains have surged. Hopefully, that trend continues, and job seekers and employers gain greater confidence in the local economy,” Dalton said.
About 1,400 employers in Grand Erie were looking to hire in February, up 17% from January, according to Grand Erie Jobs, the planning board’s community online job board. However, actual postings were down slightly to 1,900.
Visit Statistics Canada’s website to read their news release on the February 2024 employment numbers for Canada and Ontario.
