Ottawa, ON — The number of people working in construction rose by 35,000 in December following a decrease in November, according to Statistics Canada.
The increase in workers was largely due to significant gains in four provinces, according to the Labour Force Survey. Ontario led with an increase of 16,000, followed by Alberta with 13,000. On a year-over-year basis, employment in construction was up by 84,000 in December.
Additionally, investment in building construction in October was largely steady, up 0.2 per cent to $20.9 billion, with Ontario accounting for nearly all the gains.
Total employment across all sectors rose by 104,000 in December, with the unemployment rate declining 0.1 percentage points to five per cent. Employment growth was led by an increase among youth aged 15 to 24, up 69,000, which recouped cumulative losses observed for this group from July to September.
December employment increases were seen in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Saskatchewan. In contrast, there were few changes seen in the other provinces.