In the face of last week’s discouraging job-growth numbers from Statistics Canada, the Bank of Montreal (BMO) says businesses are prepared to boost hiring — at least somewhat — in the second half of 2014.
According to survey results released August 11, 26% of B.C. employers plan to increase their workforce. Those numbers mirror the national figures.
Two-thirds of employers in B.C. plan to keep their employment numbers the same through to the end of the calendar year.
The lowest numbers are in Quebec and the Prairies, where just 19% and 22% of business owners reported intentions to increase employee numbers, respectively.
Employers in Alberta are the most likely to boost hiring by the end of the year, as 35% of business owners in that particular province said they intended to expand their workforce in 2014.
On August 8, Statistics Canada reported the nation’s unemployment rate fell from 7.1% to 7% between June and July.
However, the country only managed to add 200 jobs during that period.
Statistics Canada attributed the 0.1% drop in the unemployment rate to people leaving the workforce.
Despite the country’s slow job growth, BMO said the manufacturing and export-related industries are expected to pick up this year due to stronger U.S. demand and a weaker Canadian dollar.
Net hiring intentions in 2014 are 18% in the manufacturing sector, 17% in the service sector and 7% in retail, according to the BMO survey.
The survey was conducted among 502 business owners and contains a margin of error of plus-or-minus 4.4%.
