The Tourism Human Resource Module is now available upon request.
The tourism sector continues to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic
The number of paid worker and self-employed jobs in tourism industries in Canada has grown by 10.9% in 2021 and 12.7% in 2022. Despite these significant gains, the number of jobs in 2022 (1.7 million jobs) remained nearly 200,000 jobs below its pre-pandemic level in 2019 (1.9 million jobs).
Much of this recovery is attributable to gains in the food and beverage services industry, where jobs increased by nearly 128,000 in 2021 and nearly 86,000 in 2022. These increases followed a decline of more than 328,000 jobs in 2020. In 2020, the accommodation industry (-41.5%) contracted the most among all tourism industries, but has since led the growth, up 34.6% from 2020 to 2022.
While Nunavut (+55.4%) and Prince Edward Island (+36.0%) recorded the largest growth from 2020 to 2022 in terms of jobs in tourism industries, Ontario (+27.8%) and Quebec (+24.5%) contributed the most to the recovery.
The tourism sector remains a significant contributor to the Canadian economy, accounting for 8.6% of all jobs in 2022.
Job losses are filled more quickly by part-time paid workers
There were significant declines in both part-time (-30.8%) and full-time (-28.6%) paid worker jobs in 2020. Subsequently, over 101,000 jobs were filled by part-time workers in 2021, followed by an additional 52,000 jobs in 2022. The reverse trend was seen with full-time job growth, which increased by fewer jobs in 2021 (+34,000 jobs), compared with 2022 (+131,000 jobs).
By 2022, shares of part-time versus full-time jobs were realigned with 2019 pre-pandemic levels. Part-time jobs accounted for 44.4% of jobs in 2022, closely matching 2019's share of 44.2%.
Similar impacts and recoveries across genders
Paid worker jobs occupied by women declined by 30.5% in 2020, slightly more than the 28.6% decrease in jobs held by men. However, countering this trend, women's jobs grew by 26.4% from 2020 to 2022, higher than the 24.3% recovery in men's jobs. A similar trend was seen in hours worked and wages.
Despite occupying 51.9% of the jobs in 2022, women accounted for 48.4% of hours worked and 42.6% of wages.
Staggered resurgence depending on age group
Since 2009, the makeup of paid worker jobs has been slowly shifting towards older age groups. However, as of 2022, 15- to 24-year-olds remained the largest cohort of paid workers, holding nearly 30% of jobs. The pandemic had similar impacts across age groups, with declines ranging from 27.5% for workers aged 65 years and older to 31.4% for 15- to 24-year-olds in 2020.
Despite similar impacts from the pandemic, the rebound in jobs after 2020 has differed markedly across age groups. Youth aged 15 to 24 years experienced the largest growth in 2021 (+17.3%), but also the smallest gain in 2022 (+9.4%). Workers aged 25 to 64 years experienced the reverse—a moderate increase in 2021 (+7.7%), followed by stronger growth in 2022 (+15.2%). Those aged 65 years and older had the most stable growth, with an 11.9% increase in 2021, followed by a 12.1% rise in 2022.
Table 1: Summary statistics of the Tourism Human Resource Module, 2022
Note: some data tables may best be viewed on desktop.
Note to readers
The Tourism Human Resource Module is funded through a partnership agreement with Tourism HR Canada. It provides timely and reliable statistics on the human resource dimension of the tourism sector. Estimates include data from 2009 to 2022 for Canada and the provinces and territories.
The Tourism Human Resource Module provides information on jobs, compensation and hours worked in tourism industries and includes jobs that are attributable to demand from tourists and non-tourists. This information is different from the data on tourism jobs in the National Tourism Indicators and the Tourism Satellite Account, which consider only those jobs directly attributable to demand from tourists. These variables are aggregated into five industry groups: transportation, accommodation, food and beverage services, recreation and entertainment, and travel services.
Employee jobs are those for which employers must complete a Canada Revenue Agency T4 Statement of Remuneration Paid. This category also includes jobs where workers are paid by tips or commissions.
Jobs from self-employment include those performed by working owners of unincorporated enterprises and members of their household who work without a wage or salary (i.e., unpaid family workers).
Beginning with the 2021 Census of Population, the gender variable refers to the gender of the person holding the paid worker job. Gender refers to an individual's personal and social identity as a man, woman or non-binary person (someone who is not exclusively a man or a woman). Because of the small size of the non-binary population, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable was necessary. Before its introduction in the 2021 Census, this variable referred to an individual's sex at birth.
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Latest Developments in the Canadian Economic Accounts (13-605-X) is available.
User Guide: Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts (13-606-G) is also available.
Methodological Guide: Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts (13-607-X) is also available.
Reference
Contact information
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