Job creation stats revised downward

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Using updated census data, Statistics Canada revised its Labour Force Survey for 2014 showing the Canadian economy created fewer jobs than first reported.

The revised data shows that 121,000 new jobs were created in Canada last year, not 186,000 that was reported at the end of 2014. StatsCan has revised the unemployment rate for December 2014 slightly upward to 6.7 per cent.

The largest employment gains were recorded in health care and social assistance.

The participation rate among Canadian workers in 2014 was the lowest since 2000, partly due to an aging population with an increase of Canadians who are older than 55.

Marvin Ryder of the DeGroote School of Business explains this revision is more serious than the one last August. At that time StatsCan reported a job gain of 200 for July; that figure was corrected to 42,000.

He did not expect the latest census figures to have such an impact. “We knew they were going to have to do it some time. 120,000 versus 180,000, that’s an error rate of 33 per cent. Maybe we do need to talk about doing something different.”

“Clearly the Bank of Canada had this data last week when they adjusted that interest rate, that now makes a lot more sense.”