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August 31, 2023PAYROLL EMPLOYMENT AND AVERAGE WEEKLY EARNINGS, JUNE 2023 Monthly (June 2023 vs May 2023, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia had 453,374 payroll employees in June 2023, up 0.3% (+1,334) compared to May 2023. Canada had 18.05 million employees, up 0.3% from May 2023. There were gains in nine provinces, led by Newfoundland and Labrador, and a small decline (-0.05%) in New Brunswick.
Nova Scotians' average weekly earnings were $1,064.90 in June of 2023, a gain of $1.78 (+0.2%) from revised May 2023 results.
Nationally, average weekly earnings were $1,203.64, an increase of 0.3% (+$3.37) from average weekly earnings in May 2023. Five provinces reported gains in average weekly earnings. Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan reported the biggest gains while New Brunswick reported the largest decline.
Nova Scotia's average weekly earnings in June 2023 were second lowest among provinces (ahead of only Prince Edward Island). Alberta reported the highest average weekly earnings.
Nova Scotia's average weekly earnings were highest in company management, professional and technical services, information and culture, and finance and insurance industries. The lowest average weekly earnings were reported in Nova Scotia's accommodations and food service industries, arts, entertainment and recreation, and retail trade.
In June 2023, Nova Scotia's average weekly wages were 88.5% of the national average. Nova Scotia average weekly wages were below the comparable national average for every industry except health/social assistance and accommodation and food services. The smallest gaps were in company management as well as education. The largest gaps were in forestry/logging (68.9% of the national average) and public administration (84.1% of the national average).
Year-over-year (June 2023 vs June 2022)
Compared with the same month in 2022, Nova Scotia's payroll employment grew by 2.4% (+10,583) in June 2023. This was slower than the national average gain of 2.6%. Nine provinces reported growth in payroll employment, with the fastest gain in Alberta and the only decline in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Among the industries reported by Statistics Canada, Nova Scotia's largest industries of employment were health care and social assistance (which includes daycares), followed by retail trade and education.
Forestry and logging as well as arts, entertainment and recreation and manufacturing had the fastest year-over-year growth in payroll employment in Nova Scotia. Finance and insurance reported the largest percentage decline in payroll employment.
Average weekly wages grew by 3.9% in Nova Scotia from June 2022 to June 2023. This was faster than the national pace of 3.6%.
Average weekly wages grew by 3.6% across Canada from June 2022 to June 2023. There were gains in each province, with the fastest rise in Newfoundland and Labrador. New Brunswick reported the slowest gain.
Average weekly wages were up 5.0% in Nova Scotia's goods-producing industries and 3.5% in Nova Scotia's services-producing industries. Most of the industries reported year-over-year growth in average weekly wages with the largest increases in company management as well as accommodation and food services and health and social assistance industries. Average weekly wages were down the most for real estate and rental and leasing and finance and insurance.
Year-to-date (January-June 2023 vs January-June 2022)
In January-June 2023, Nova Scotia's payroll employment increased 2.4% over January-June 2022. Across Canada, payroll employment growth was 2.4% with gains in all provinces. Alberta reported the fastest rise in payroll employment while Newfoundland and Labrador reported the slowest growth rate.
In January-June 2023, forestry and logging, construction as well as arts, entertainment and recreation, and professional and technical services industries reported the fastest employment growth in percentage terms compared to the same period in 2022. Information and culture and finance and insurance reported the only percentage declines.
In January-June 2023, Nova Scotia's average weekly earnings increased by 3.2% compared to the same period in 2022. National average weekly earnings were up 2.2% in the first six months of the year with gains in all provinces. Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island reported the fastest gains in average weekly earnings while Alberta reported the slowest rises.
In January-June 2023, manufacturing, company management, and accommodation and food services reported the fastest percentage gains in average weekly earnings compared to the same period in 2022. Public administration reported the only percentage decline, while retail trade was unchanged.
In January-June 2023, Nova Scotia's average weekly earnings were highest in company management as well as in professional and technical services industries. Nova Scotians' average weekly earnings averaged 88.2% of the national value for all industries in January-June 2023. All Nova Scotia industries reported average weekly earnings below their national counterparts. The gaps were narrowest in retail trade as well as health and social assistance. Information and culture and public administration workers in Nova Scotia reported the largest gaps in average weekly earnings compared with the national average for the industry.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 14-10-0222-01 Employment, average hourly and weekly earnings (including overtime), and average weekly hours for the industrial aggregate excluding unclassified businesses, monthly, seasonally adjusted; Table 14-10-0223-01 Employment and average weekly earnings (including overtime) for all employees by province and territory, monthly, seasonally adjusted
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