Employment rates in the largest CMAs

A strong labour market in Calgary attracts more workers

• Since 1994, Calgary has consistently posted the highest employment rate of any major census metropolitan area (CMA), because of strong job growth. In 2003, 71.1% of all Calgarians aged 15 years and over had jobs, compared with 71.5% the year before. The minor decline occurred because the population of this CMA grew faster than its employment: from 2002 to 2003, the working-age population grew by 2.6% while employment rose by 2.1%, with job gains spread across several sectors.
• Since 1994, the employment rate in Edmonton has also been among the highest in the country. Strong job growth in this CMA in recent years has kept pace with solid population growth. In 2003, the employment rate for Edmonton was 68.5%, up from 67.9% in 2002.
• Employment in Toronto, the largest CMA in the country, grew by 2.1% from 2002 to 2003.There were increases in construction, health care and social assistance, as well as in finance, insurance, real estate and leasing. The working-age population rose more quickly (up 2.5%) than employment, so the employment rate actually fell from 64.8% in 2002 to 64.5% in 2003.
• Among the 14 largest CMAs, both Victoria (59.5%) and St. Catharines-Niagara (60.1%) had the lowest employment rates in 2003. These CMAs contain the largest proportions of people aged 65 years and over, most of whom are not in the labour force, which tends to lower the employment rate.

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