OTTAWA — Statistics Canada says the economy added 62,000 jobs in November compared with an addition of 84,000 in October.
The gains were mostly focused in full-time work with a gain of 99,000 jobs, offset somewhat by a decline in part-time work of 37,000 positions.
The average economist estimate had been for a gain of 20,000 jobs and the unemployment rate to remain unchanged, according to financial data firm Refinitiv.
The gains in November left the country 574,000 jobs short of recouping the approximately three million jobs lost from lockdowns in March and April that sent the unemployment rate skyrocketing to 13.7 per cent in May.
Last month, the unemployment rate fell to 8.5 per cent compared with 8.9 per cent in October.
But the pace of gains has slowed, with employment rising by 0.3 per cent in November compared to an average of 2.7 per cent per month between May and September.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 4, 2020
