NB 311
March 9, 2007
FREDERICTON (CNB) - A record number of New Brunswickers were working last month as the unemployment rate dropped to a new low, Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour Minister Ed Doherty reported today.
"The fact that nearly 360,000 New Brunswickers were working in the province last month is an indication that our plan under the Charter for Change, to make economic development a priority again, is starting to show results," Doherty said. "I am also pleased that the unemployment rate stood at 6.9 per cent, but we recognize that more work is left to be done to meet several of our labour market challenges. We will continue to support the efforts in our province to help our employers prosper, and to assist more of our people in finding work."
There were 359,800 people working in New Brunswick last month, the highest number recorded since 1976, when Statistics Canada began taking this survey. The unemployment rate of 6.9 per cent also stood as the lowest rate recorded during the same period. The time period could be longer, but the figures released are based on methodology for labour statistics that changed in 1976, so numbers prior to that date are not comparable.
"We have a clear plan for making job creation a priority again, which I believe will yield real results over the long term, and these early results are encouraging," Doherty said.
Figures released by Statistics Canada show that there were 359,800 New Brunswickers employed in February, up by 2,500 from last month and 1,100 from the same time last year. The monthly unemployment rate stood at 6.9 per cent in February, a decrease of 1.2 per cent from January's rate of 8.1 per cent, and down significantly from the 9.4 per cent registered at the same time last year. In addition, the labour force in the province, which measures those working or actively seeking work, stood at 386,500 last month.
"With the Charter for Change as our guide, we will continue to be innovative in order to match and expand our skilled labour pool to meet the needs of our growing employer community," Doherty said. "Our strategy to grow a skilled workforce through retaining and providing skills to our current workers, repatriating former New Brunswickers, and renewed efforts through immigration, will help us build a brighter future for our province as we move further down the road to self-sufficiency."
Employment growth in February was strongest on a year-over-year basis in these three areas: utilities, construction and manufacturing.
07/03/09
MEDIA CONTACT: Shawn Hearn, communications, Post-Secondary Education, Training, and Labour, 506-453-2568.
07/03/09