James Cuddy and North Superior Workforce Planning Board

Building a Superior Workforce: 2015–2017 Local Labour Market Plan

James Cuddy & North Superior Workforce Planning Board

Northern Policy Institute, in partnership with the North Superior Workforce Planning Board, released a report on the labour market in Northwestern Ontario that details some of the unique characteristics of our region.

The paper explores population, employment, participation, unemployment, and trends specific to the youth labour market here in Northwestern Ontario.

Some of the key findings from the report include:

1)   Since 2001 the Northwest has continuously experienced annual youth out-migration. In 2013, there was a net decline of nearly 400 individuals aged 15 to 29, the majority of which were 20 to 24.
2)   For the youth that have remained here, however, participation and employment rates have been higher and unemployment rates lower than provincial and national levels.
3)   Employment rates in Northwestern Ontario have tended historically to be more volatile than for the province generally.
4)   Since 2008 and the last steep decline in the percentage of primary sector employees in the region, the Northwestern labour market has delivered very stable employment levels.

 

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