As more jobs are lost, more people are looking for opportunities in other provinces
The latest report from Statistics Canada shows that there were 7,800 fewer people working in Saskatchewan last month than were a year earlier. While every other province except Newfoundland and Labrador saw an increase in the number of people working, Saskatchewan had the biggest drop.
“Both of our neighbours to the west saw significant growth in jobs – nearly 46,000 more people working in Alberta – but, here in Saskatchewan, the Sask. Party’s heartless cuts and bad management cost us 7,800 jobs,” said NDP Jobs Critic Vicki Mowat. “On top of the jobs we’ve lost, these latest numbers are also troubling because they show that more and more people have given up looking for work here in Saskatchewan.”
When compared to the same time last year, the numbers show there are fewer people looking for work in Saskatchewan. This explains the change in unemployment rate despite the drop in the number of Saskatchewan people who were able to find work. This trend is supported by other recent statistics that show that 50 per cent more people left Saskatchewan to find opportunity in other provinces in the first nine months of 2017 than did during the same time period ten years earlier.
“There’s nothing for the Sask. Party to brag about here,” said Mowat. “They can play with the numbers all they want but the fact is, real Saskatchewan people are really losing their jobs.”
The Statistics Canada numbers also show a particularly steep drop in both youth employment (6,600) and in ‘professional, scientific and technical services’ (4,700) when compared to last year. The First Nations unemployment rate also continues to sit at close to 20 per cent.
“When we see the fastest growing population in our province continue to be ignored, and we see young and educated people finding it harder to find work here in Saskatchewan, it’s not only a problem for today – it’s a problem that will affect our ability to grow in the future,” said Mowat. “The people of Saskatchewan deserve better than being told we have to accept things as they are. We need the government to plan for the future, we need to partner with Indigenous communities, and we need to invest in diversifying and growing our economy.”
We also saw a significant drop year over year in the following areas:
Records show former Sask. Party Finance Minister lobbied for Calgary surgery scheme on behalf of a major Sask. Party donor
REGINA - Today, the Official Opposition grilled the Premier and his Minister of Health after the Minister misled the public, claiming that he had not been lobbied by a former Sask. Party MLA when Saskatchewan's official lobbyist logs show the exact opposite.
Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital short 15 pediatric specialists
REGINA - Today, the Official Opposition and concerned parents sounded the alarm on Premier Scott Moe’s failing healthcare staffing plan. The Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital is short at least 15 pediatric specialists, forcing families to travel to Toronto for basic care.
REGINA - According to new data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, Saskatchewan people face the longest average wait times in Canada for knee and hip procedures for the fifth consecutive year.
Scott Moe retains the worst jobs record in all of Canada since he took office in 2018
REGINA - The latest Statistics Canada report shows that, after six years in office, Premier Scott Moe still has the worst jobs record in all of Canada as the province loses 6,000 jobs, all of them full-time, in March.