Canadian employment gains not evenly
distributed during economic recovery

Employment gains have not been evenly distributed throughout the Country during the latest economic recovery as indicated in the diagram below. Most provinces in eastern Canada, with the exception of PEI, posted employment growth rates substantially below the national average in the 1996 versus 1992 period. PEI’s stellar performance was boosted by the construction of the Confederation Bridge.
Newfoundland was the only province to experience employment losses over this period despite the massive construction activity and high number of jobs associated with the Hibernia project. Employment losses reflect the widespread and substantial impact of the groundfish closures on labour markets during this period.

This unbalanced growth trend has continued into the first ten months of this year. Upwards of 85 percent of the new jobs created so far in 1997 have occurred in Ontario and western Canada.