However, February 2021 seemed to give the Canadian economy a breather. A) Yes, the unemployment rate now stands at 8.2%, while this same figure reached 9.4% the previous month, January. It was this month when the country’s economy witnessed the loss of more than 200,000 jobs, which were also added to the hundreds of thousands lost since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. It is not surprising then that this rebound in employment produced in February surprised the markets.
Carlos Valverde, Tickmill commentator, notes: “The better-than-expected report on Friday should ease concerns about widespread scars on the job market due to the pandemic.” Indeed, this upturn in the numbers of the Canadian workforce coincides with the relaxation of the restrictive measures that were imposed after the appearance of the virus. However, it is not all good news: this unexpected drop in unemployment has taken place due to the rebound in lower-paying jobs, such as those related to accommodation and restaurants. Jobs in other industries, generally better paid, hardly changed between January and February. Furthermore, the vast majority of the jobs created correspond to part-time contracts.
Thus, for employment in Canada to return to pre-pandemic levels, it is still necessary to create more than half a million jobs. This is where it comes in the modification of the Canadian immigration plan, which wants to attract many more immigrants than had been anticipated before the health crisis. Thus, the North American country expects to receive more than 400,000 foreign residents this year, which is at variance with the previous goal of 350,000 immigrants for the same period. With this increase, Canada hopes to rejuvenate its population and thus help improve the numbers of the working-age population compared to that of retirement age.
It remains to be seen what happens with COVID and what repercussions it will have in the coming months in terms of international migration and employment; For now, both Canada and the rest of the world will have to wait for 2021 and the ongoing vaccination programs to have the long-awaited positive effect.
– .
