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Public sector employment
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Public sector employment continues to increase, although its relative importance in the total employed labour force remains constant.
The public sector includes federal, provincial, territorial and local governments as well as government business enterprises.
Public sector employment totalled 3.2 million in the second quarter of 2007, up 0.9% from the same period in 2006.
Public sector employment had reached a low of just under 2.7 million on average in the third quarter of 1999. Since then, public sector employment has grown approximately 2.2% per year from 2000 to 2006.
However, employment in the public sector as a share of the total employed labour force has remained relatively constant. Since 2000, public sector employees have represented about 19% of the total employed labour force.
Within the general government (federal, provincial and territorial as well as local governments, excluding health and educational institutions), only the federal component decreased. There were around 390,000 employees on average in the second quarter, down 3.7% from the same quarter of 2006, when a large number of temporary employees had been hired for the 2006 Census. The decrease was partly offset by an increase in Canadian military employment, up 2.3% from the second quarter of 2006.
Provincial and territorial general government employment grew to just over 360,000 employees, up 1.7% from the same quarter in 2006. Local general government also increased, reaching an estimated 395,000 employees, up 2.3% from the second quarter in 2006.
The distribution of public sector employment by component has remained stable over the past 10 years, including the second quarter of 2007, when it was essentially unchanged compared with the second quarter of 2006.
During the second quarter of 2007, the three levels of general government (federal, provincial/territorial and local) accounted for 35.2% of total public sector employment. Educational institutions accounted for 32.1%, health and social service institutions, 24.6%, and government business enterprises, 8.1%.
The share of wages and salaries by component has changed slightly over the past 10 years, including the second quarter of 2007. From 1997 to 2006, health and social service institutions' share of total public sector wages and salaries increased from 19.9% to 22.5%, while the federal government's share rose from 14.3% to 16.4% and educational institutions' share advanced from 9.2% to 10.2%.
In contrast, over the same period, government business enterprises' proportion of total public sector wages and salaries decreased from 10.9% to 8.7%, as did that of provincial/territorial general governments (from 13.5% to 12.4%), as well as that of local general governments (from 12.1% to 11.4%).
| Public sector employment1 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First quarter 2006 | Second quarter 2006 | First quarter 2007 | Second quarter 2007 | |||||
| thousands | ||||||||
| Public sector | 3,146 | 3,221 | 3,198 | 3,249 | ||||
| General government | 1,085 | 1,145 | 1,104 | 1,145 | ||||
| Federal | 375 | 405 | 382 | 390 | ||||
| Provincial and territorial | 340 | 354 | 343 | 360 | ||||
| Local | 370 | 386 | 378 | 395 | ||||
| Educational institutions | 1,032 | 1,030 | 1,050 | 1,042 | ||||
| Universities and colleges2 | 354 | 339 | 357 | 340 | ||||
| School boards | 678 | 692 | 693 | 702 | ||||
| Health and social services institutions | 768 | 781 | 783 | 798 | ||||
| Government business enterprises | 261 | 265 | 261 | 265 | ||||
| ||||||||
Estimates of public sector employment and aggregate public sector wages and salaries for the second quarter of 2007 are now available. The data for the first quarter have been revised.
Note: The public sector includes all economic entities controlled by government. It is comprised of four major components: federal government (ministries, departments, agencies and non-autonomous funds, and autonomous funds and organizations); provincial and territorial government (ministries, departments, agencies and non-autonomous funds, autonomous funds and organizations, universities and colleges, and health and social service institutions); local government (municipalities and non-autonomous funds, autonomous funds and organizations, and school boards); and government business enterprises (at the federal, provincial/territorial and local levels).
Available on CANSIM: tables 183-0002 and 183-0004.
Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 1713.
Data tables on public sector employment are also available online in the Summary tables module of our website.
For a more detailed description of how public sector employment is defined and reconciled with other information sources, consult the document, Reconciliation of Public Sector Employment Estimates from Multiple Information Sources, at the link: 1713.
For more information or to order data, contact Client Services (613-951-0767; pid-dipinfo@statcan.gc.ca). To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Peter Elliott (613-951-4551; peter.elliott@statcan.gc.ca), Public Institutions Division.
