Labour figures show N.B., region outpacing rest of country

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BY GREG WESTON
TIMES & TRANSCRIPT STAFF

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FREDERICTON - There are more people living and working in Metro now than there were this time last year, according to new figures from Statistics Canada.

The working-age population of the Moncton metropolitan area grew by 1,700 from October 2008 to October 2009, reaching 111,300 people.

Kevin Silliker says the increase is proof of the ongoing growth of the region and its economy.

"I think there's definitely an influx of talent, population and people into our labour force and the numbers support that," says the business development officer for the City of Moncton.

"This is telling me that people continue to move into the Greater Moncton community for work. If you analyze the other CMAs (census metropolitan areas), there's no doubt that Moncton is performing quite well compared to other centres across Canada."

Metro's labour force also grew by 1,400 during the past 12 months -- a time when the province's total number dropped by about the same amount.

Statistics Canada defines the labour force as the number of people older than 15 who either have a job or are unemployed, but still looking for work. Other groups of people, such as retirees, aren't included in labour force numbers.

Unemployment in Metro fell to 6.7 per cent, down from 7 in September, but still up from 4.6 in October 2008.

After two straight months of some growth, employment across Canada decreased by 43,000 in October, with that drop coming entirely in part-time jobs. As a result, the unemployment rate went up 0.2 percentage points to 8.6 per cent.

By comparison, New Brunswick saw a slight increase of 1,600 new jobs in October, dropping the unemployment rate 0.4 per cent.

Donald Arseneault, minister of post-secondary education, training and labour, says the province is weathering the economic storm since it no longer relies on a small number of economic sectors.

"Throughout this economic recession that we're going through, New Brunswick has fared well in the sense that we've worked very hard not only to diversify the economy, but also put forward stimulus package and strategic investments to help us grow," he says.

During the past 12 months, Fredericton's labour force rose by 3,800 people to a total of 56,000, with unemployment dropping from 4.6 per cent to 4.1. In Saint John, the labour force increased by 2,700 people, with unemployment falling 1.1 percentage points to 5.2 per cent.

Arseneault says he expects the moderate growth to continue in the province.

"We've got to be proud of that and now we've got build on it and continue to making sure that all regions get benefits from these strong numbers," he says.