Payroll employment, earnings and hours

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Non-farm payroll employment rose for the third consecutive month in April, increasing by 35,600. This brings total gains since the start of the upward trend in August 2009 to 166,900 (+1.2%).

April's increases were widespread among services industries, with the largest gains in retail and wholesale trade; amusement, gambling and recreation; professional, scientific and technical services and administrative and support services.

There were also gains in the goods sector in April, as the number of jobs continued to grow in construction and in mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction.

Widespread increases in services in April

Employment rose in retail and wholesale trade in April (+11,400), the largest increase in over two years. In retail trade, payroll jobs were up in building material, garden equipment and supplies dealers; food and beverage stores; and general merchandise stores. In wholesale trade, employment increased in machinery, equipment and supplies and building material and supplies.

Payroll employment increased by 5,200 in other amusement and recreational services in April, specifically in golf course facilities. Employment increased one month earlier in this industry than usual.

In professional, scientific and technical services, payroll jobs increased by 3,400 in April, bringing growth in this industry to 15,100 (+2.1%) since August 2009. Over this period, most of the gains were in architectural, engineering and related services as well as management, scientific and technical consulting services.

There was also a gain of 3,100 in administrative and support services employment in April, particularly in services in buildings and dwellings; office administrative services and employment services. Since August 2009, payroll jobs have been on an upward trend in employment services (+10,900 or +7.4%) and services to buildings and dwellings (+6,200 or +4.0%).

April's gains in the services sector were partly offset by declines in investigation and security services; warehousing and storage; and food services and drinking places.

Continued gains in construction and mining

Construction employment increased by 5,400 in April. Since August 2009, construction has added jobs every month, with the total increase reaching 36,500 (+4.6%). Growth since August has been particularly notable in specialty trade contracting and building construction. Some industries with ties to construction have also experienced job gains over this period, including building material and supplies dealers; and lumber, millwork, hardware and other building supplies wholesaler-distributors.

Mining, quarrying, oil and gas extraction added 2,600 payroll jobs in April. Since August 2009, this industry has added 9,800 jobs (+5.7%), all in support activities for mining, oil and gas extraction and mining and quarrying. These gains were partially offset by losses in oil and gas extraction.

Manufacturing down in April

Payroll employment in manufacturing declined by 8,600 in April, following four consecutive months of increases. Losses were concentrated in transportation equipment; paper; and chemical manufacturing.

Despite April's losses, the number of payroll jobs in this sector has risen since November 2009 (+14,400 or +1.0%), with notable gains in petroleum and coal product manufacturing; plastic products; foundries; sawmills and wood preservation; and other wood product manufacturing. Over the same period, there were losses in both pulp, paper and paperboard mills and printing and related support activities.

Weekly earnings growth accelerating since December 2009 

In April, average weekly earnings, including overtime, of non-farm payroll employees was $845.25, up 3.3% from April 2009. This was the largest year-over-year increase since April 2008. In recent months, the pace of growth in average weekly earnings has accelerated.

Average weekly earnings grew in six of Canada's seven largest industrial sectors. From April 2009 to April 2010, growth was above average in educational services (+8.6%), retail trade (+5.2%), manufacturing (+4.2%), and accommodation and food services (+4.2%). Over the same period, average weekly earnings declined in health care and social assistance (-2.0%).

Year-over-year average weekly earnings rose in every province. Saskatchewan and Alberta had the fastest increases (+5.7% each), followed by Prince Edward Island (+4.9%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (+4.6%) while Quebec (+2.2%) had the slowest increase.

Comparing the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours and the Labour Force Survey

The data in this report come from the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (SEPH). SEPH is a business survey that provides a detailed portrait of employees by industry. It complements information from the Labour Force Survey (LFS), which is a household survey.

Data on employment, wages and hours derived from these two surveys differ for a number of reasons.

First, the reference periods are different. LFS data are collected during a "reference week," usually the week following the 15th of the month. For SEPH, the reference period is an entire month.

The LFS includes people who are self-employed, as well as workers who take unpaid leave. SEPH does not cover these groups. Industry coverage for the LFS is comprehensive; SEPH excludes agriculture, fishing and trapping, and religious organizations.

The two data sources count multiple job holders differently. In the LFS, people with more than one job are counted only once as "employed." SEPH is a count of filled positions on payroll, so each job is counted separately.

Finally, national data produced by the LFS do not include people living in the three territories or on reserves while SEPH does. LFS data are based on where people usually reside. SEPH counts employees in the province or territory where they work, although this has little effect on the comparability at the national level.

Available on CANSIM: tables 281-0023 to 281-0039 and 281-0041 to 281-0046.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2612.

Detailed industry data, data by size of enterprise based on employment, and other labour market indicators will be available soon in the monthly publication Employment, Earnings and Hours (72-002-X, free).

Data on payroll employment, earnings and hours for May will be released on July 30.

For more information, or to order data, contact Client Services (toll-free 1-866-873-8788; 613-951-4090; labour@statcan.gc.ca). To enquire about revisions, concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Jeannine Usalcas (613-951-4720), Labour Statistics Division.