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Payroll employment, earnings and hours, May 2016

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Released: 2016-07-28

Average weekly earnings — Canada

$955.57

May 2016

0.9% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — N.L.

$1,017.65

May 2016

-1.3% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — P.E.I.

$809.71

May 2016

0.9% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — N.S.

$829.91

May 2016

0.2% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — N.B.

$882.31

May 2016

4.0% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Que.

$878.15

May 2016

2.8% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Ont.

$971.87

May 2016

1.9% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Man.

$891.80

May 2016

0.9% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Sask.

$975.74

May 2016

-0.2% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Alta.

$1,107.66

May 2016

-3.7% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — B.C.

$919.11

May 2016

1.5% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Y.T.

$1,051.46

May 2016

-1.6% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — N.W.T.

$1,369.06

May 2016

-4.1% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings — Nvt.

$1,267.71

May 2016

2.0% 

(12-month change)

Average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees were $956 in May, little changed (+0.2%) from the previous month. Compared with 12 months earlier, average weekly earnings increased 0.9%.

Chart 1  Chart 1: Year-over-year change in average weekly earnings and average weekly hours
Year-over-year change in average weekly earnings and average weekly hours

The change in weekly earnings reflects a number of factors, including wage growth, changes in the composition of employment by industry, occupation, and level of job experience, as well as average hours worked per week.

Non-farm payroll employees worked an average of 32.8 hours per week in May, little changed from April and down from an average of 33.0 hours in May 2015.

Average weekly earnings by sector

In the 12 months to May, average weekly earnings increased in 5 of the 10 largest industrial sectors, led by administrative and support services; wholesale trade; and retail trade. Over the same period, earnings declined in professional, scientific and technical services; accommodation and food services; and health care and social assistance.

Chart 2  Chart 2: Year-over-year change in average weekly earnings in the 10 largest sectors, May 2016
Year-over-year change in average weekly earnings in the 10 largest sectors, May 2016

Compared with May 2015, average weekly earnings in administrative and support services increased 4.4% to $783. Earnings growth in the sector was widespread, with services to buildings and dwellings being the largest contributor.

Average weekly earnings in wholesale trade rose 4.2% to $1,163 in the 12 months to May, with the largest growth in wholesalers of building material and supplies, and motor vehicles and parts. Wholesalers of machinery, equipment and supplies also contributed notably to the gain in earnings.

In retail trade, earnings increased 3.7% to $569, mainly the result of gains in department stores and other general merchandise stores.

Average weekly earnings in manufacturing were up 2.3% to $1,086, while there were declines in the number of employees. The earnings growth was largely driven by manufacturers of plastics and rubber products, and machinery.

In the 12 months to May, earnings in educational services rose 1.8% to $1,024. Gains were spread across two large industries: elementary and secondary schools, and community colleges and CEGEPs.

On the other hand, average weekly earnings declined in professional, scientific, and technical services, down 3.2% to $1,295. The largest decreases were in architectural, engineering, and related services, as well as accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services.

Earnings in accommodation and food services were down 2.8% to $365, largely driven by earnings losses in full-service restaurants and limited-service eating places. At the same time, average weekly hours worked in accommodation and food services decreased 3.7%, while the number of employees increased. Earnings in this sector have been on a downward trend since January 2016.

Year over year, average weekly earnings in health care and social assistance decreased 1.3% to $863 in May. Among the subsectors, nursing and residential care facilities posted the largest decline in earnings.

There was little change in earnings in public administration and construction.

Average weekly earnings by province

Year over year, average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees increased in five provinces in May, led by New Brunswick. At the same time, earnings declined in Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador, while they were little changed in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan.

Chart 3  Chart 3: Year-over-year change in average weekly earnings by province, May 2016
Year-over-year change in average weekly earnings by province, May 2016

Average weekly earnings in New Brunswick were up 4.0% to $882 in May, with widespread gains. Growth in both earnings and employment in the health care and social assistance sector, one of the largest in the province, contributed the most to the increase.

In the 12 months to May, earnings in Quebec rose 2.8% to $878. Gains were widespread, with manufacturing and retail trade contributing the most to the increase.

On a year-over-year basis, average weekly earnings in Ontario were up 1.9% to $972. Earnings rose in many sectors, notably in finance and insurance, and information and cultural industries. On the other hand, there were declines in transportation and warehousing; accommodation and food services; and professional, scientific, and technical services.

In British Columbia, earnings rose 1.5% to $919, with notable increases in real estate and rental and leasing; information and cultural industries; finance and insurance; and wholesale trade. Employment growth in professional, scientific, and technical services also contributed to the earnings gain, as employees in this sector are paid relatively higher wages on average.

Compared with May 2015, average weekly earnings in Manitoba increased 0.9% to $892. Earnings gains in sectors such as retail trade and educational services were partly offset by losses in health care and social assistance.

In the 12 months to May, earnings in Alberta were down 3.7% to $1,108. The decline was driven by sectors such as construction and professional, scientific, and technical services, where both payroll employment and earnings decreased. Earnings in the province have been on a downward trend since early 2015.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, average weekly earnings declined 1.3% to $1,018. The largest decreases were in educational services and accommodation and food services.

Non-farm payroll employment by sector

The number of non-farm payroll jobs decreased by 29,300 (-0.2%) in May, following an increase of 26,700 in April. The largest job losses were in construction, administrative and support services, and retail trade. On the other hand, there were more payroll jobs in public administration, coinciding with activities related to the 2016 Census.

Compared with 12 months earlier, the number of non-farm payroll employees rose by 88,300 or 0.6% in May. Payroll jobs increased the most in health care and social assistance (+58,600 or +3.2%); accommodation and food services (+25,900 or +2.1%); public administration (+18,200 or +1.7%); educational services (+18,000 or +1.5%); and arts, entertainment and recreation (+14,100 or +5.3%).

Over the same period, there were fewer payroll jobs in construction (-24,200 or -2.5%); mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (-24,000 or -11.2%); manufacturing (-24,000 or -1.6%); "other services" (-12,700 or -2.3%); and wholesale trade (-12,200 or -1.6%).



  Note to readers

The Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (SEPH) is produced by a combination of a census of approximately one million payroll deductions provided by the Canada Revenue Agency, and the Business Payrolls Survey, which collects data from a sample of 15,000 establishments. The key objective of the SEPH is to provide a monthly portrait of the level of earnings and the number of jobs and hours worked by detailed industry at the national, provincial and territorial levels.

Estimates of average weekly earnings and hours worked are based on a sample and are therefore subject to sampling variability. This analysis focuses on differences between estimates that are statistically significant at the 68% confidence level. Payroll employment estimates are based on a census of administrative data and are not subject to sampling variability.

Statistics Canada also produces employment estimates from its Labour Force Survey (LFS). The LFS is a monthly household survey, the main objective of which is to divide the working-age population into three mutually exclusive groups: the employed (including the self-employed), the unemployed and those not in the labour force. This survey is the official source for the unemployment rate and collects data on the socio-demographic characteristics of all those in the labour market.

As a result of conceptual and methodological differences, estimates of changes from SEPH and LFS do differ from time to time. However, the trends in the data are quite similar. To better understand the conceptual differences between employment measures from the LFS and SEPH, refer to section 8 of the Guide to the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (Catalogue number72-203-G).

Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted data, which facilitate comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations. For more information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.

Non-farm payroll employment data are for all hourly and salaried employees, as well as for the "other employees" category, which includes piece-rate and commission-only employees.

Average weekly hours data are for hourly and salaried employees only and exclude businesses that could not be classified to a North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code.

All earnings data include overtime pay and exclude businesses that could not be classified to a NAICS code. Earnings data are based on gross taxable payroll before source deductions. Average weekly earnings are derived by dividing total weekly earnings by the number of employees.

With each release, data for the current reference month are subject to revision. Data for the previous month have been revised. Users are encouraged to request and use the most up-to-date data for each month.

Real-time CANSIM tables

Real-time CANSIM tables 281-8023, 281-8026, 281-8047 and 281-8063 will be updated on August 12. For more information, consult the document Real-time CANSIM tables.

Next release

Data on payroll employment, earnings and hours for June will be released on August 25.

Products

A summary table is available from the Browse by key resource module of our website. Under Summary tables, choose Subject then Labour.

Job Vacancy Statistics (5202) from the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours for April are now available in CANSIM.

More information about the concepts and use of the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours is available online in the Guide to the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (Catalogue number72-203-G), from the Browse by key resource module of our website, under Publications.

Information about Job Vacancy Statistics concepts is available online in the Guide to the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (Catalogue number72-203-G). The separate Guide to Job Vacancy Statistics (Catalogue number72-210-G) has been discontinued.

Contact information

For more information, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca).

To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Gordon Song (613-793-2392; gordon.song@canada.ca), Labour Statistics Division.

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