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Tuesday, January 27, 2004

Employment Insurance

November 2003 (preliminary)

The estimated number of Canadians (adjusted for seasonality) receiving regular Employment Insurance benefits in November was 571,310, down 1.4% from October. While this was the fourth consecutive monthly decline, the number was still 3.8% higher than in November 2002. Nova Scotia, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia and the Yukon have all shown continuous decreases for at least the past three months. At the national level, the recent downward trend follows steady increases in the number of regular beneficiaries observed during the first half of 2003.

Number of beneficiaries receiving regular benefits
  November 2003p October to November 2003 November 2002 to November 2003
  seasonally adjusted
    % change
Canada 571,310 -1.4 3.8
Newfoundland and Labrador 37,110 1.3 -3.2
Prince Edward Island 7,910 0.6 -7.4
Nova Scotia 29,880 -0.8 -3.7
New Brunswick 33,750 -1.2 -3.8
Quebec 186,980 -0.7 5.4
Ontario 148,730 -1.0 12.2
Manitoba 14,760 1.0 3.7
Saskatchewan 13,080 0.5 3.8
Alberta 33,570 -1.9 -3.5
British Columbia 65,090 -4.2 0.9
Yukon Territory 900 -10.9 -10.9
Northwest Territories and Nunavut 1,180 3.5 -1.7
  unadjusted for seasonality
    % change
Northwest Territories 850 18.1 -7.6
Nunavut 340 13.3 30.8
pPreliminary figures.
Note:The number of beneficiaries includes all claimants who received regular benefits for the Labour Force Survey reference week, usually containing the 15th day of the month.

Also on a seasonally adjusted basis, regular benefit payments in November totalled $752.6 million, while the number of people making initial and renewal claims was 243,590.

Note: Employment Insurance Statistics Program data are produced from an administrative data source and may, from time to time, be affected by changes to the Employment Insurance Act or administrative procedures.

The number of beneficiaries is a measure of all persons who received Employment Insurance benefits for the week containing the fifteenth day of the month. The regular benefit payments series measures the total of all monies received by individuals for the entire month.

Available on CANSIM: tables 276-0001 to 276-0006, 276-0009, 276-0011, 276-0015 and 276-0016.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2604.

Data on Employment Insurance for December will be released on February 24.

For general information or to order data, contact Client Services (1-866-873-8788; 613-951-4090; labour@statcan.gc.ca). To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Gilles Groleau (613-951-4091), Labour Statistics Division.

Employment Insurance statistics
  November 2003 October 2003 November 2002 October to November 2003 November 2002 to November 2003
  seasonally adjusted
        % change
Regular beneficiaries 571,310p 579,700p 550,620 -1.4 3.8
Regular benefits paid ($ millions) 752.6p 771.5r 722.4 -2.5 4.2
Initial and Renewal Claims received ('000) 243.6p 229.2r 233.0 6.3 4.5
  unadjusted
        % change
All beneficiaries ('000) (see note to users) 799.3p 724.0p 769.9 10.4 3.8
Regular beneficiaries ('000) 510.5p 446.1p 494.3 14.4 3.3
Initial and Renewal Claims received ('000) 297.1 253.2 280.5 17.3 5.9
Payments ($ millions) 1,076.0 1,011.7 1,024.2 6.4 5.1
  year-to-date (January to November)
      2003 2002 2002 to 2003
          % change
Claims received ('000)     2,653.2 2,521.9 5.2
Payments ($ millions)     13,470.5 13,313.2 1.2
rRevised figures.
pPreliminary figures.
Note:"All beneficiaries" includes all claimants receiving regular benefits (for example, as a result of layoff) or special benefits (for example, as a result of illness) and are representative of data for the Labour Force Survey reference week which is usually the week containing the 15th.of the month.


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Date Modified: 2004-01-27 Important Notices