Women struggle to find jobs in Toronto — and it’s not getting better / Job availability drops in 2013: StatsCan
Job openings drop in December: StatsCan
OTTAWA — The number of job openings is dwindling, according to Statistics Canada.
In a report released on March 18, Canadian businesses reported 200,000 job vacancies in December 2013 — down 21,000 compared to 2012.
For every job vacancy, there were 6.3 unemployed people, up from 5.7 the previous year. Because the number of unemployed people changed only slightly, the increase in the unemployment-to-job-vacancy ratio was indeed the result of fewer job openings, the report noted.
Prince Edward Island saw the highest ratio at the end of last year — 20.2 unemployed people for every job vacancy. That’s an additional 8.1 people per vacancy compared to December 2012.
Western provinces also experienced a jump. In Alberta, there were 2.3 unemployed people per job opening, up from 1.9 in December 2012. In that case, the number of unemployed people went up. Similarly in Saskatchewan, that ratio was 2.4, up from 1.8 the previous year, indicating the number of vacancies fell faster than the number of unemployed people.
Across the rest of the country, the unemployment-to-job-vacancy ratios remained steady.
Of the major industrial sectors, construction had the highest number of unemployed people for every vacancy in December at 8.3, unchanged from 2012.
This is likely because the construction industry is seasonal, meaning the ratio tends to be higher during the winter months and lower during the summer months.
The job vacancy rate declined in five major sectors, including health care and social assistance, administrative and support services, wholesale trade, manufacturing and finance and insurance industries.
Canada’s overall vacancy rate among businesses was 1.3 per cent in December 2013, down from 1.5 per cent the previous year.
Women struggling to find jobs in Toronto: Study
TORONTO — The employment landscape for women in Toronto is bleak — and not getting better, according to a new report.
Entitled Working Women, Working Poor and released on March 6, ahead of International Women’s Day, the study tracked 44 women across a range of ages, ethnicities and education levels in Toronto, as well as their experience in the labour market.
The study was put out by the Women and Work Research Group, of which unions such as Unifor are a part of.
As part of its findings, the report indicated there is a sense that women have lost considerable ground in the workforce, and there exists a feeling of being squeezed across all sectors — particularly amongst older and younger women.
The problem stems from a vicious cycle of short-term contracts and temporary jobs, the study noted, fuelled by a precarious labour market.
As a result, women tend to get stuck in jobs that fall below their skill level, which leads to the overall "de-skilling of women," the study concluded.
In order to level the playing field and tackle such obstacles, the research group looked at a number of recommendations, which came directly from the women themselves.
That includes a permanent temporary agency unit in the government’s employment standards branch, a streamlined strategy for personal support workers and an improved support system for the growing ghetto of women workers, particularly newcomers to the country.
