If you’re on the hunt for jobs, the latest Statistics Canada report could point you in the right direction.
The government agency released its payroll employment, earnings and hours, and job vacancies report for June on Thursday.
It found that job vacancies, or unfilled positions, changed very little that month at 554,000. Compared to the same month last year, vacancies were down by 190,500 (-25.6%).
“The job vacancy rate—which corresponds to the number of vacant positions as a proportion of total labour demand—held steady in June at 3.1%, and was 1.1 percentage points lower than in June 2023 (4.2%),” reads the report.
StatCan adds that there were 2.6 unemployed people for every job vacancy in June 20224, up from 2.5 in the previous month, mainly due to an increase in the number of unemployed Canadians.
“This was the fifth consecutive monthly increase in the unemployment-to-job vacancy ratio,” reads the report. “This ratio has seen an upward trend since its lowest level of 1.0 in July 2022, indicating cooling in the labour market over the period.”
If you’re unemployed and struggling to find jobs, the report also lists what industries need positions filled.
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According to StatCan, vacancies increased in five sectors including administrative and support, waste management and remediation services (+4,200; +16%), transportation and warehousing (+3,800; +12.4%), educational services (+3,200; +16.3%), information and cultural industries (+2,600; +54.6%), and arts, entertainment and recreation (+1,100; +16.3%).
Vacant job positions in these industries may give you keywords to search while on the hunt.
Industries where it might be hard to find an opening are food services and accommodation. The report found that job vacancies in these sectors decreased by 7,300 (-10.8%) to 59,900 in June.
“This is the lowest number of job vacancies since February 2021 (59,100), prior to the widespread availability of the COVID-19 vaccine,” explained the agency. “Compared with June 2023, job vacancies in the sector were down by 33,100 (-35.6%) in June 2024.”
If you’re looking for a career in healthcare and social assistance, job vacancies in these industries held steady in June, but there are still 119,500 unfilled positions.
In terms of which provinces have the most unfilled positions, the report found job vacancies increased in Manitoba (+4,300 to 24,800), New Brunswick (+1,800 to 10,400), and Prince Edward Island (+1,100 to 2,600).
Meanwhile, job vacancies in Saskatchewan decreased by 2,600 to 17,700. There was little change in the remaining six provinces.