Employment Insurance

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In July, 672,200 people received regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits, down 31,400 from June. This decline offsets increases observed in the spring, and brings the number of beneficiaries back to the level recorded in March.

The number of beneficiaries was down in nine provinces in July, with the most notable declines in Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and New Brunswick. At the same time, there was a small increase in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Since the peak of June 2009, the decline in the number of regular beneficiaries totalled 157,100, offsetting nearly half of the 329,000 increase that occurred during the 2008/2009 recession.

Recent upward trend in number of claims

To receive EI benefits, individuals must first submit a claim. In July, 247,900 initial and renewal claims were received, up 6,200 from June. The number of claims has been trending up since March, increasing by 17,700 over the period.

The fastest rates of increase from March to July occurred in Ontario (+12.6%), Manitoba (+12.6%), Alberta (+12.1%), British Columbia (+9.1%) and Québec (+8.6%).

This contrasts with the period from May 2009 to March 2010, when the number of claims trended down. Over that period, the number of claims received had declined by 97,500 nationally.

The number of claims provides an indication of the number of people who could become beneficiaries.

Largest decreases in beneficiaries in Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and New Brunswick

In Quebec, the number of regular EI beneficiaries declined by 5,800 to 186,800 in July, more than offsetting increases in the two preceding months in that province. Since the peak of June 2009, the number of beneficiaries in Quebec has fallen by 23,200 (-11.0%).

In Ontario, the number of beneficiaries fell by 4,600 in July, following a drop of 3,900 in June. These two consecutive monthly declines have more than offset the increases in April and May. Since the peak of June 2009, the number of regular beneficiaries in Ontario has fallen by 76,900 (-26.8%).

In Alberta, the number of beneficiaries decreased by 1,700 to 47,000 in July, the ninth consecutive monthly decline. Since the peak of June 2009, the number of beneficiaries in Alberta has fallen by 15,900 (-25.2%).

In July, the number of beneficiaries decreased by 1,200 in New Brunswick, partly offsetting increases observed in the previous two months. In Newfoundland and Labrador, the only province to record an increase in July, the number of regular beneficiaries reached 40,000, up 950 or 2.4% from the month before. Since the peak of June 2009, however, the number of beneficiaries in Newfoundland and Labrador has fallen by 10.3%.

Sub-provincial and demographic overview

Most large centres show year-over-year declines in beneficiaries

Employment Insurance data by sub-provincial region, sex and age are not seasonally adjusted. Therefore, they are compared on a year-over-year basis.

Between July 2009 and July 2010, declines in the number of regular Employment Insurance beneficiaries were widespread as 123 of the 143 large centres registered declines (see map). Large centres are those with a population of 10,000 or more.

In Quebec, there were year-over-year declines in most large centres. The largest percentage declines occurred in Sorel-Tracy, Amos, Val-d'Or, Sept-Îles and Granby. In Montréal, the number of beneficiaries fell by 4,000, the fifth consecutive month of year-over-year declines. In contrast, the number of beneficiaries in the census metropolitan area of Québec rose slightly for the second consecutive month.

In Ontario, most large centres posted a decrease between July 2009 and July 2010. The most notable declines were in Woodstock, Guelph, Windsor, and Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo. In Toronto, the number fell by 23,000 to 86,700, the largest of five consecutive year-over-year declines. Hamilton and London both posted a large decline of 3,700. In Greater Sudbury, the number of regular EI beneficiaries fell year-over-year by 1,500 to 4,300 in July, its first decline in number of beneficiaries since August 2008.

In Alberta, the number of regular beneficiaries fell in virtually all large centres between July 2009 and July 2010. The fastest percentage declines occurred in Brooks, Grande Prairie, Red Deer and Medicine Hat. The number of beneficiaries fell for the fourth consecutive month in both Calgary and Edmonton. In Calgary, the number of people receiving regular benefits fell by 6,300 to 15,200, and in Edmonton, it decreased by 3,500 to 15,300.

In New Brunswick, the situation varied among the large centres. Bathurst, Edmunston, Fredericton and Campbellton have shown year-over-year decreases in their number of regular beneficiaries for at least the past five months, while there were more beneficiaries in Moncton and Saint John this July compared with a year earlier. For Moncton, it was the second consecutive increase, but for Saint John, the number of beneficiaries has been on the rise since the 2008/2009 recession.

The number of beneficiaries in Vancouver fell by 2,500 to 35,300, the second consecutive year-over-year decline since the start of the labour market downturn in the fall of 2008.

Demographic groups

Faster decline in the number of beneficiaries among men than women

Between July 2009 and July 2010, the number of male EI regular beneficiaries fell by 86,400 to 349,000 (-19.8%). This was the fifth consecutive year-over-year decline.

The fastest rates of decline occurred among young men aged 15 to 24 (-31.0%) and men aged 25 to 54 (-22.1%). The number of beneficiaries also declined for men aged 55 and over (-3.1%).

The number of female beneficiaries declined at a slower pace during this year-long period, down 7.1% (-23,400). This was the second consecutive decline in the number of female beneficiaries.

The number of female beneficiaries aged 25 to 54 declined by 23,700 (-9.5%), while the number among those aged 15 to 24 fell by 4,000 (-16.9%). In contrast, the number of female beneficiaries aged 55 and over increased by 4,300 (+7.8%). Despite this increase, the pace of growth for women 55 and over has slowed steadily since October 2009.

Available on CANSIM: tables 276-0001 to 276-0006, 276-0009, 276-0011, 276-0015 and 276-0016.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2604.

Data tables are also now available online. From the Key resource module of our website under Summary tables, choose Subject then Labour.

Data on Employment Insurance for August will be released on October 21.

A set of maps, Employment Insurance Statistics Maps, July 2010 (73-002-X, free), is now available online. The maps show percent changes in the number of people receiving regular EI benefits for all census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations in Canada. From the Key resource module of our website, under Publications, choose All subjects, then Labour.

For more information, or to order data, contact Client Services (toll-free 1-866-873-8788; 613-951-4090; labour@statcan.gc.ca). To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Dominique Pérusse (613-951-4064) or Vincent Ferrao (613-951-4750), Labour Statistics Division.