The number of employees receiving pay and benefits from their employer—measured as "payroll employment" in the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours—decreased by 17,700 (-0.1%) in February, following an increase of 35,700 (+0.2%) in January. On a year-over-year basis, payroll employment was up by 154,700 (+0.9%) in February.
Meanwhile, job vacancies in Canada increased to 656,700 in February, up by 21,800 (+3.4%) from January, but were little changed from December 2023.
In February 2024, monthly payroll employment decreases were recorded in 7 out of 20 sectors, led by accommodation and food services (-10,000; -0.8%), manufacturing (-9,500; -0.6%), and retail trade (-8,200; -0.4%). These declines were partially offset by gains in public administration (+6,600; +0.5%), finance and insurance (+6,400; +0.8%), health care and social assistance (+5,200; +0.2%) and real estate, rental and leasing (+900; +0.3%). The remaining nine sectors were little changed.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).