Statistics Canada released its Labour Force Survey for April, and Saskatchewan’s two main political parties disagree over whether the numbers paint a positive picture in the province.
The Saskatchewan government said that the April labour force numbers highlight “strong continued growth in Saskatchewan’s economy,” with 5,600 new jobs compared to April of last year.
“Saskatchewan continues to impress with even more job growth in the face of national economic uncertainty, with 5,600 new jobs and the second lowest provincial unemployment rate,” Immigration and Career Training Minister Jeremy Harrison said. “With 25 months of consistent job growth, year-to-date merchandise and wholesale trade exports both up 30 per cent, and over 50 per cent increase to urban housing starts, Saskatchewan is proud of the story it has to tell of growth that works for everyone.”
However, the Official Opposition notes that the 5,600 new jobs created amount to a one per cent job growth rate and is the worst year-over-year rate among Canadian provinces.
“It’s concerning to see the Premier doing victory laps over a small uptick of 200 jobs last month, especially when he lost a whopping 4,300 jobs the month before that,” said Offical Opposition Leader Carla Beck. “When you look at the big picture, the Sask. Party has had the worst rate of job creation in Canada since Scott Moe took office. We have all the ingredients to boom but this Sask. Party government is standing in our way.”
While both statements reign true from both parties, Saskatchewan has seen its unemployment rate dip compared to one year ago, from 5.4 per cent down to 4.8 per cent, making that tied for the second-lowest rate in the country.
While the unemployment rate has decreased, the province’s employment rate hasn’t rose, dropping to 64 per cent, down from 64.9 per cent in April of 2022. Despite not seeing their employment rate improve, Saskatchewan has the second highest employment rate, behind Alberta.
