Current Month | What is the Jobboom Index? | Press release | Past Months
   
Jobboom Index for February

The Jobboom Index Drops as Jobs Are Lost

January brought more bad news for Ontario: the province lost 70,000 jobs during the first month of 2009. Overall, this represents a total of 137,000 job losses since October 2008. The Ontario Index continues its downward trend, losing 33.1 points to settle at 14.3 % in February.

The job losses were basically divided equally in January between the Goods-producing sector
(-40,900 jobs, or 58 % of losses) and Services
(-30,200).

Wherein Goods-producing sector is concerned, the losses were especially noticeable in the Manufacturing sector (-35,800). Agriculture
(-6,200) and Utilities (-4,300) also lost some of their strength while another sector saw an increase its workforce: Forestry, fishing, mining, oil and gas (+ 2,000).

   FEBRUARY 2009
   FORECAST
14.3%

UNFAVOURABLE

Nearly has roughly handled as the Goods-producing sector, the Services sector reported important losses in several sub-sectors: Transportation and warehousing (-25,400), Corporate services, Business, building and other support services (-17 300), Commerce (-12,300), Professional, scientific and technical services (-10,200), Educational services (-4,200), Accommodation and food services (-1,300) and Information, culture and recreation (-1,000). Only the sub-sectors of Finance, insurance, real estate and leasing (+ 18,400), Healthcare and social assistance (+ 10,000), Other services (+ 9,700), and Public administration (+ 3,200) yielded a positive balance sheet for January.

Over the past 12 months, employment has decreased by 0.9 % in the province. This month’s Index ranks 118th out of 120, meaning there were
2 months with weaker indices over the past 10 years. From December 1998 to December 2008, employment in this province has risen by 18 %.

Ottawa-Gatineau region: 84.9 % — Favourable
This Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), which had lost 1,500 jobs in December 2008, lost 5,800 jobs in January 2009. Its Jobboom Index thus drops dramatically by 9.7 points and exits the “Excellent” level, where it had been at for seven months, and lands in the “Favourable” level in February with 84.9 %. Job creation in February has a tendency to slow down in this region according to the data compiled by Statistics Canada over the past year, which adds to this month’s index drop.

Over the past 12 months, employment in this CMA has grown by 0.7 %. This month’s Index ranks 17th out of 120, meaning there were 103 months with weaker indices over the past 10 years. The number of jobs in the region has increased by 28 % in ten years.

Toronto region: 11.6 % — Unfavourable
In January, this CMA lost 6,700 jobs, after having seen 1,800 losses in the previous month. These losses gnaw a bit more at the 18,100 jobs created from September to November 2008. Therefore, the Jobboom Index drops by
7.8 points in February and stops its downward trend dangerously close to the gutter level, set at 11.6 %.

Over the past 12 months, employment in the Toronto region has grown by 0.9 %. This month’s Index ranks 119th out of 120, meaning there was one month with a weaker index over the past ten years. From 1999 to 2009, employment in this CMA has nevertheless risen by 25 %.

  INDEX
(percent)		 EMPLOYMENT SITUATION COMPARED TO JANUARY
ONTARIO 14.3 UNFAVOURABLE -33.1
Ottawa-Gatineau Region 84.9 Favourable -9.7
Toronto Region 11.6 Unfavourable -7.8