Statistics Canada released today monthly results from the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey (JVWS) for December 2020. 

Canadian employers were seeking workers for an estimated 477,950 positions in December 2020 (unadjusted for seasonality) with a vacancy rate of 3.0%.  Nova Scotia had 9,965 job vacancies in December with a vacancy rate of 2.5%. The highest vacancy rates were reported for British Columbia (3.6%) and Quebec (3.5%). Alberta had the lowest vacancy rate at 1.9%.   

Nationally, health care and social assistance sector had the highest number of job vacancies at 95,050, with a job vacancy rate of 4.4% (not seasonally adjusted). The highest job vacancy rate was recorded for administrative and support, waste management and remediation services at 4.6%. Education services (1.0%) and public administration (1.1%) had the lowest vacancy rates in December.

Notes: The job vacancy rate is a key indicator of labour market conditions. A higher job vacancy rate indicates a tighter labour market where it is more difficult for employers to find suitable candidates for the positions offered. A lower job vacancy rate signals labour market slack and potentially more job seekers competing for each vacant position. 

Information on monthly job vacancies will continue in future Statistics Canada releases, and a more detailed analysis will be released with quarterly estimates from the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey in March 2021.

Sources: Statistics Canada Tables 14-10-0371-01 and 14-10-0372-01