Employment Insurance, June 2014
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Released: 2014-08-21
Following a decline in May, the number of people receiving regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits was little changed in June at 501,900.
The number of beneficiaries fell notably in Ontario and New Brunswick, while increasing sharply in British Columbia.
The change in the number of regular EI beneficiaries reflects various situations, including people becoming beneficiaries, people going back to work and people no longer receiving regular benefits.
Chart 1
Little change in the number of regular Employment Insurance beneficiaries in June
Provincial and metropolitan area overview
In Ontario, the number of beneficiaries fell for the second consecutive month, down 3.2% in June. There were declines in 14 of the 15 metropolitan areas in the province, ranging from 13.6% in Windsor to 1.6% in Brantford. The number of beneficiaries in Toronto fell for the third consecutive month, down 2.2% to 54,500. St. Catharines–Niagara (+2.1%) was the lone metropolitan area in the province to record more beneficiaries in June, offsetting the decline of the previous month.
The number of people receiving benefits in New Brunswick declined by 2.5% in June, as the province posted a second consecutive monthly decrease. At the same time, there were fewer beneficiaries in Saint John, also for the second month in a row.
The number of beneficiaries declined for the second consecutive month in Quebec, down 1.6% in June. The Québec metropolitan area posted a notable decrease of 11.4% for the month. However, there were more beneficiaries in the other five metropolitan areas of the province, with increases ranging from 5.1% in Gatineau to 1.0% in Saguenay. In Montréal, 58,200 people received benefits in June, up 4.0%.
There was a small decline of 1.2% in the number of people receiving benefits in Nova Scotia, with Halifax posting fewer beneficiaries.
In British Columbia, the number of beneficiaries increased by 9.8% after having trended down since the fall of 2013. All four metropolitan areas in the province reported more beneficiaries in June. In Vancouver, the number of people receiving regular benefits totalled 22,600 in June, up 10.8%, partly offsetting the decline the previous month.
There was a small increase in the number of people receiving benefits in Prince Edward Island (+1.4%) in June. This follows a downward trend observed in the province since the fall of 2013.
Regular Employment Insurance beneficiaries by occupation
In the 12 months to June, the number of beneficiaries among all occupation groups declined by 3.3%. There were fewer people receiving benefits in 8 of the 10 major occupation groups, especially occupations unique to processing, manufacturing and utilities (-8.2%) as well as occupations unique to primary industry (-7.5%).
At the same time, there were more beneficiaries among people whose last occupation was in social science, education, government service and religion (+2.9%) and among people whose last occupation was in health (+2.3%). For people in social science, education, government service and religion, most of the increase was among teachers and professors.
Chart 2
Number of regular Employment Insurance beneficiaries by occupation, percentage change, June 2013 to June 2014
Employment Insurance beneficiaries in major demographic groups
In June, there were fewer women aged 15 to 24 receiving benefits (-2.2%), adding to the decline observed in the previous month. At the same time, the number of beneficiaries increased among women aged 25 to 54 (+2.1%), counterbalancing the previous month's decline.
For men, the number of beneficiaries in June fell by 2.7% for the 55-and-over group, a second decline in a row, and decreased slightly for those aged 25 to 54 (-1.4%).
In the 12 months to June, the number of women aged 15 to 24 (-13.5%) receiving benefits continued to decline at a faster pace than men (-8.2%) in the same age group.
Over the same period, the number of beneficiaries among people aged 25 to 54 fell for men (-3.7%) and women (-3.1%). At the same time, women aged 55 and over posted a 1.7% decline, while men in the same age group experienced a 1.5% increase.
More Employment Insurance claims in June
Claims estimates in June were impacted by where the last day of June 2014 fell in the calendar. Since June 30 was a Monday, some claims which might normally be received in the first week of July were received in June. Therefore, results should be interpreted with caution. With this calendar effect, the number of claims received in Canada was unusually high in June (+10.9%). Manitoba (+44.3%), Ontario (+24.2%) and British Columbia (+18.8%) were most notably affected.
Chart 3
More Employment Insurance claims in June
Note to readers
Regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits are available to eligible individuals who lose their jobs and who are available for and able to work, but cannot find a job. To receive EI benefits, individuals must first submit a claim. The number of claims provides an indication of the number of people who could become beneficiaries.
There is always a certain proportion of unemployed people who do not qualify for benefits. Some unemployed people have not contributed to the program because they have not worked in the past 12 months or their employment is not insured. Other unemployed people have contributed to the program but do not meet the eligibility criteria, such as workers who left their job voluntarily or those who did not accumulate enough hours of work to receive benefits.
All data in this release are seasonally adjusted. For more information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.
EI statistics are produced from administrative data sources provided by Service Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada. These statistics may, from time to time, be affected by changes to the Employment Insurance Act or administrative procedures.
The number of regular EI beneficiaries and the number of claims received for the current and previous month are subject to revision.
The number of beneficiaries is a measure of all people who received EI benefits from June 15 to 21. This period coincides with the reference week of the Labour Force Survey (LFS). However, initial and renewal claims data are for the entire month.
EI statistics indicate the number of people who received EI benefits, and should not be confused with LFS data, which provide information on the total number of unemployed people.
Data tables are also now available online. From the Browse by key resource module of our website under Summary tables, choose Subject, then Labour.
Data on Employment Insurance for July will be released on September 18.
Contact information
For more information, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca).
To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Vincent Ferrao (613-951-4750; vincent.ferrao@statcan.gc.ca), Labour Statistics Division.
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