Labour productivity rose for the first time in two years during the second quarter of 2022 as pandemic restrictions eased across much of the country, according to a recent report from Statistics Canada.
, StatCan said the 0.2 per cent uptick in labour productivity is the first after seven straight quarters of decline, beginning when the first lockdown measures were put in place in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Real gross domestic product rose 0.9 per cent in the second quarter, between April and June, similar to the first quarter of 2022. StatCan defines labour productivity as real GDP per hour worked.
"With the lifting of public health measures in almost all regions of the country during the second quarter, businesses were able to carry out their economic activities without any pandemic-related restrictions, such as public capacity limits and mask requirements," the report said.
Of the main industries that saw growth in the second quarter, the report found notable increases in productivity in arts, entertainment and recreation (20 per cent), accommodation and food services (14.3 per cent), as well as transportation and warehousing (5.3 per cent) – all sectors affected strongly by public health measures, StatCan said.
The number of hours worked rose for the fourth straight quarter at 0.7 per cent, although this gain was smaller compared to the previous three quarters.
The number of people working more than one job also rose 1.3 per cent for the eighth straight quarter, while the number of people absent without pay fell 7.7 per cent after rising 11.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2022, according to the report.
Unit labour costs, or the cost of workers' wages and benefits per unit of real GDP as defined by StatCan, were up two per cent in the second quarter, compared to 2.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2022, the report said.
StatCan says this slower pace of growth is due to rising productivity. Meanwhile, average compensation per hour worked also rose 2.2 per cent, following a similar 2.1 per cent gain in the first quarter of 2022.
The report comes as Canada deals with high but slowing inflation, with major banks predicting another interest rate hike next week.
Driven by a decline in self-employment, the Canadian economy also recorded its first monthly job losses of the year in June with 43,000 jobs lost.
The country's unemployment rate fell to 4.9 per cent that month — the lowest since 1976 — as fewer people looked for work.
Job vacancies rose 3.2 per cent between May and June to a new high of 1,037,900 positions, for a job vacancy rate of 5.9 per cent – the third straight month the number of jobs going unfilled was above a million.
The latest job numbers for July also marked a second-straight month of job losses, with the Canadian economy losing 31,000 jobs and the jobless rate remaining steady at 4.9 per cent.
Wage growth rose 5.2 per cent in July year over year, same as June.
With files from The Canadian Press
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