The Business and Community Newsletter – December 2020
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Release date: December 10, 2020
Feature article
StatCan to measure impacts of COVID-19 on health care workers
Statistics Canada is currently administering a short crowdsourced questionnaire on the Impacts of COVID-19 on Health Care Workers: Infection Prevention and Control.
The purpose is to understand the impacts of the pandemic on Canadian health care workers, with particular focus on access to personal protective equipment (PPE) and infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in the workplace. The information we collect will help to inform the delivery of health care services, and to better understand what health care workers need in terms of equipment, training and support.
Anyone working in a health care setting is encouraged to participate. This includes those providing health care services directly to individuals (e.g. physicians, nurses, massage therapists, dentists, dietitians), but also those providing technical support (e.g. receptionists, technicians) and other services in a health care setting (e.g. cleaning and food services staff, security).
From November 24 to December 13, the questionnaire is available through this link: Impacts of COVID-19 on Health Care Workers: Infection Prevention and Control.
StatCan to measure the diversity of Charity and Non-profit Boards
Statistics Canada is currently using crowdsourcing to collect data on the Diversity of Charity and Non-profit Boards.
The purpose of this initiative is to understand who serves on these boards. In addition to collecting information about the diversity of board members, we explore topics such as what organizations do, who they serve, and where they are located. This information will help non-profits and charities better understand how their board compares to those of similar organizations.
We encourage anyone involved in the governance of a non-profit or charitable organization to participate
From December 4 to 23, the questionnaire is available through this link: Diversity of Charity and Non-profit Boards.
Labour Force Survey, November 2020
In September and October, many provinces began introducing targeted public health measures in response to rising COVID-19 numbers. In early November, restrictions related to indoor dining and fitness facilities were eased in Ontario, while in Manitoba new measures affecting restaurants, recreational facilities and retail businesses were introduced. Much of Quebec remained at the "red" alert level in November, leading to the ongoing closure of indoor dining and many recreational and cultural facilities.
Employment growth continues to slow
Employment rose by 0.3% in November, following an increase of 0.5% in October. From May to September, employment grew by an average of 2.7% per month.
Full-time employment rose by 99,000 in November, while part-time work was little changed.
Among those who worked at least half of their usual hours, 4.6 million worked from home in November.
Statistics Canada and Children First Canada partner on COVID-19 response
Statistics Canada is pleased to announce a partnership with a national organization dedicated to the well-being of children to explore ways to improve the lives of the nation's youngest Canadians during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The partnership with Children First Canada, which is being announced on National Child Day, will explore opportunities to develop data-driven decision tools for policy makers. These timely and evidence-based decision supports could help guide the nation's policy makers as they evaluate ways, in a time-sensitive and rapidly evolving environment, to improve the lives of children and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Children First Canada is a national non-profit alliance of children's charities, hospitals, research institutes and corporations that works with young people and advocates on their behalf to improve their well-being.
"The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the need for leaders in both the public and private sectors to harness the power of data so that they can see challenges and issues sooner and act faster. Through partnerships and innovative collaboration, Statistics Canada is playing a prominent role in helping our country better understand the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. By responsibly using data to develop deeper insights, we are enabling leaders to make more timely, evidence-based decisions that will improve the lives of the nation's children and their families."
— Anil Arora, Chief Statistician, Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada and contact tracing
Statistics Canada expertise and interviewing competencies coupled with its human resource capacity are in high demand to assist in the COVID-19 contact tracing efforts at the federal and provincial levels.
Contact tracing is the process of getting in touch with people who may have been exposed to the virus and making sure they are taking measures to control its spread. This is done so these individuals can be informed of their possible infection and take measures to quarantine and be monitored for symptoms. This helps to ensure they receive the necessary care and treatment and helps prevent further transmission.
Contact tracing activities are led by the provinces and territories; however, as the federal government has access to a significant number of experienced and fully equipped human resources able to do this work, it has extended an offer of support to the provinces and territories, if needed, to help meet increased demands due to COVID-19.
Consequently, Statistics Canada is in close contact and communication with all interested provinces/territories and federal health departments and agencies. At this time, Statistics Canada has signed agreements with the provinces of Ontario, Alberta, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova-Scotia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the Health Agencies of Fraser Health, Toronto and Ottawa. We are also in discussions with several provinces and territories.
COVID-19 – A Data Perspective Portal
StatCan COVID-19: Data to Insights for a Better Canada: A series of articles on various subjects, which explore the impact of COVID-19 on the socio-economic landscape. New articles include:
Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses in Canada, third quarter 2020
As a result of the widespread measures taken to contain the spread of COVID-19, the Canadian economy contracted. By the end of May, the Canadian economy had been transformed by COVID-19 and many businesses had begun to adapt to the new reality by shifting to teleworking, reducing hours, laying off staff, applying for government funding or seeking rent relief. As parts of Canada were exposed to a second wave of COVID-19 and other parts were in recovery, Statistics Canada ran the Canadian Survey on Business Conditions to better understand the ongoing impacts on businesses. Though survey results show that the majority of businesses in Canada were impacted in some way, smaller businesses with 1 to 99 employees were slightly more affected.
Impact of COVID-19 on businesses majority-owned by women, third quarter of 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the Canadian economy and the ability of businesses to operate. Using data from the Canadian Survey on Business Conditions, a comparison was made to assess the impact of COVID-19 on businesses majority-owned by women.
COVID-19 and the beef supply chain
This article presents an analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic impact on the Canadian beef supply chain, from Ranch to Slaughter House, from Wholesale to Retail and from domestic market to Imports/Exports. The study uses various data sources from Statistics Canada and Agriculture and Agri-food Canada (AAFC) with main focus on wholesale services prices. This publication also uses data from the product-based development project for the Wholesale Services Price Index (WSPI) using the North American Product Classification System (NAPCS). This project is part of the Statistics Canada's user-centric modernization initiative focusing. The product-based WSPI data are not yet released to the public. Note: The WSPI represents the change in the price of wholesale services, which is defined as the margin price (or margin). The margin is the difference between the average purchase price and the average selling price of a given product. It is not a wholesale selling price.
Also worth reading
Health reports
Added, free and total sugar content and consumption of foods and beverages in Canada
This study calculated the added and free sugar content of all 5,374 foods and beverages recorded in the 24-hour dietary recalls of the 2015 Canadian Community Health Survey – Nutrition using established procedures.
Consumption of ultra-processed foods in Canada
A larger share of ultra-processed foods and drinks (UPF) in the diet is increasingly linked with poor diet quality, weight gain and elevated risk of diet-related chronic disease. This study used 2015 national-level data, the most recent available, to characterize the intake of UPF among Canadians and to examine changes since 2004.
Did you know…?
Join the 2021 Census team!
Looking to make a lasting contribution to Canada, its communities and people? Canada's next census will take place in May 2021. Statistics Canada is hiring approximately 32,000 people across the country to work on the collection phase of the 2021 Census. In the current context of COVID-19, we are committed to ensuring the safety of our employees at all times.
Available jobs for the 2021 Census include supervisory and non-supervisory positions that require collecting census data from residents in your community, mostly on evenings and weekends. Start and end dates vary by position and location, and are between March and July 2021.
If you're interested in helping your community to plan for the future, and meeting new people while earning extra income, then this is the right opportunity for you! Apply online at Census jobs.
There will be additional job opportunities posted in early January.
Webinar: COVID-19's Impacts on the Wholesale Trade Sector: What does the survey data tell us about sales, prices and the recovery so far?
Statistics Canada is delighted to invite you to our free upcoming online learning session on COVID-19's Impacts on the Wholesale Trade Sector: What does the survey data tell us about sales, prices and the recovery so far?
This webinar will provide you with a comprehensive overview of COVID-19's impacts on the sales and prices of wholesalers in Canada based on survey data.
During this webinar, 2020 Q1 and Q2 results of the Wholesale Services Price Index (WSPI), an indicator of wholesalers' price response, will be compared against previous data projections. In addition, recent monthly wholesale data will be used to look at COVID-19's impacts and ongoing recovery for the first ten months of 2020. We will also be reviewing a recent study on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Canadian beef supply chain.
Language, Dates, Times, and Registration Links
- English: December 17, 2020, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time
- French: December 17, 2020, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time
Once on the registration page, the language that is displayed can be modified using the option at the bottom of the web page.
Joining a webinar is really simple using Zoom. All you need is a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device. You can also join by telephone only. We recommend that you join the session at least 5 minutes before the scheduled starting time.
Infographics
Active Enterprises in Canada, 2018
The entrepreneurship indicator database subset of Canadian enterprises, such as the number of active enterprises with one or more employees, the number of high-growth enterprises, the number of births and deaths of active enterprises with one or more employees, the survival of newly created enterprises, and more.
Getting to know Canada's top 1%, 2018
Income data for Canadian tax filers shed light on the distribution of income in 2018. This infographic illuminates selected characteristics of the top 1% of tax filers in Canada that year, including information on age, gender, and geographic location. The top 1% of tax filers is defined as the 1% of tax filers with the highest total incomes when ranked nationally. These estimates are for a pre-pandemic period and do not reflect any impacts of COVID-19. However, they do provide a baseline for analysing changes to the top of the income distribution during the pandemic period, once those data become available.
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