Brantford’s job market perked up last month with improvements “across the board” according to the Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie.
Advertisement 2
Article content
Article content
Article content
“November’s job numbers are a pleasant surprise,” said Danette Dalton, the executive director of the agency.
“They show that people returning to the job market found work.”
While the local jobless rate in October was 6.5 per cent, employment was unchanged and Dalton said it seemed like discouraged people were sitting things out with a noticeable increase in the number of men not in the workforce.
But, in November, the Brantford-Brant jobless rate dropped to 5.7 per cent, according to Statistics Canada estimates, and all key employment indicators improved.
Stats-Can surveyed local households and estimated that 1,100 more people were employed while the number of unemployed dropped by 600.
That made November’s unemployment rate the lowest since June and showed Brantford with better statistics than Canada and Ontario.
Advertisement 3
Article content
The country added 51,000 jobs last month but the unemployment rate crept up by .3 percent to 6.8 per cent as more people were looking for jobs.
The province’s jobless rate jumped almost a full point to 7.6 per cent – the highest since 2014, excluding the 2020 and 2021 pandemic-impacted years.
Conversely, Brantford-Brant’s November unemployment rate was the lowest among nearby communities. While some neighbors saw rates stay the same, Hamilton and Guelph had sizable increases in the jobless rate.
But Dalton warned the local good numbers don’t tell the whole story and there are continuing signs that hiring is slowing.
New positions on the Grand Erie Jobs online job board dropped by almost 20 per cent in November and there was another 20 per cent decrease in the number of businesses with jobs posted.
Advertisement 4
Article content
“Similar job boards in other communities are also seeing fewer positions,” Dalton said.
“It may be because hiring usually slows down over the winter, but we’ll see. It would be good to start 2025 on a positive note.”
Amid that good news, Dalton issued a reminder that many people are still struggling and looking for assistance, especially during the holiday season.
“Poverty doesn’t take a holiday, so it is important to support our neighbors and charities that support our neighbors.”
The local planning board is one of 26 non-profit organizations in Ontario playing a leadership role in labor force planning. It’s funded, in part, by the federal and provincial governments.
@EXPSGamble
Article content