Labour Force

The data included in this section originates from Statistics Canada, 2001 Census, and the FP Markets- Canadian Demographics 2006 publication. Questions about the data should be directed to these organizations. The terms defined in this section are:Population: Number of persons of working age. Unless otherwise indicated, estimates are usually in thousands, rounded to the nearest hundred.

Labour force: Number of civilian, non-institutionalized persons 15 years of age and over who, during the reference week, were employed or unemployed.

Employed: Number of persons who, during the reference week, worked for pay or profit, or performed unpaid family work or had a job but were not at work due to own illness or disability, personal or family responsibilities, labour dispute, vacation, or other reason. Those persons on layoff and persons without work but who had a job to start at a definite date in the future are not considered employed. Estimates are in thousands, rounded to the nearest hundred.

Full time employment: Full-time employment consists of persons who usually work 30 hours or more per week at their main or only job.

Part time employment: Part-time employment consists of persons who usually work less than 30 hours per week at their main or only job.

Unemployed: Number of persons who, during the reference week, were without work, had actively looked for work in the past four weeks, and were available for work. Those persons on layoff or who had a new job to start in four weeks or less are considered unemployed.

Not in the labour force: Persons in the civilian non-institutional population 15 years of age and over who, during the reference week, were neither employed nor unemployed.

Participation rate: The participation rate is the number of labour force participants expressed as a percentage of the population 15 years of age and over. The participation rate for a particular group (age, sex, marital status) is the number of labour force participants in that group, expressed as a percentage of the population for that group.

Employment rate: The employment rate (formerly the employment/population ratio) is the number of persons employed, expressed as a percentage of the population 15 years of age and over. The employment rate for a particular group (age, sex, marital status) is the number employed in that group, expressed as a percentage of the population for that group.

Unemployment rate: The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed persons expressed as a percentage of the labour force. The unemployment rate for a particular group (age, sex, marital status) is the number unemployed in that group, expressed as a percentage of the labour force for that group.