News release

Nova Scotia Employment at Record High, Unemployment at Record Low

Finance and Treasury Board

Employment in Nova Scotia reached an all-time high in January, while unemployment reached an all-time low.

“We are pleased to see that Nova Scotia’s economic outlook continues to be positive,” said Finance and Treasury Board Minister Karen Casey. “Government is working to create the right conditions for economic growth so that the private sector can create jobs and opportunities for Nova Scotians.”

The monthly Labour Force Survey recently released by Statistics Canada showed that Nova Scotia’s labour force increased by 5,400 in January.

Nova Scotia’s employment was up by 6,100 to 465,100, the highest level of employment on record for the province, beating the previous record set in December 2011 at 461,700.

The monthly gain included 3,600 full-time jobs and 2,400 part-time jobs. Compared with January 2018, Nova Scotia employment is up by 11,600, which included full-time employment increases of 10,100 and part-time gains of 1,400.

Unemployment was also the lowest on record. The unemployment rate fell from 7.1 per cent in December to 6.9 per cent in January. Since January of last year, the unemployment rate has fallen from 8.2 per cent to 6.9 per cent.

For more information visit https://novascotia.ca/finance/statistics/default.asp .