Labour force

According to Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS), the Battle River region’s employment rate¹ for the working age population of 15 years and older was 68.1% in 2010 and the participation rate² was 72.2%.  By comparison, Alberta’s employment and participation rates were 68.1% and 72.9%, respectively.  The region’s unemployment rate rose to an estimated 5.6% in 2010, up from 5.1% in 2009. However, this rate is lower than the Alberta average of 6.5% in 2010. 

Timely labour force estimates from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) are generally not reliable for small areas such as this region³.  Statistics Canada therefore suggests to only use the rates, such as unemployment rate and participation rate, from the LFS rather than the levels, such as total employment and working age population.  As a result, Census estimates are used for the following discussions on employment level estimates.

Between 2001 and 2006, the number of people employed in Alberta grew by 14.7% or by 239,800.  Over the same period, employment in the Battle River region grew by an estimated 1,770 or 5.2%.  In 2006, the Battle River region made up 2.0% of Alberta’s working age population (15+ years), and the region’s increase in employment between 2001 and 2006 accounted for 0.7% of all new jobs created in Alberta over that period. 

According to the 2006 census, the level of educational attainment is lower for this region than for Alberta. For the working aged population of between 25 and 64 years, 34.1% had a post-secondary degree or diploma, compared with 48.1% for all of Alberta. However, the region does have a larger share holding a trades certificate: 15.8% in the region vs. 12.4% in Alberta.  21.3% of the region’s working age population did not finish high school, higher than the Alberta average of 15.4%.

Employment Insurance Beneficiaries

In 2010, 840 people received regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits⁴ in the Battle River region, a 10% decrease from the 2009 number of 930 ⁵.  Over the same period, the number of EI recipients fell by 9% in Alberta.  As a result, the region’s share of Alberta EI recipients remained at 1.8%.  The end of the recession is also reflected in current EI estimates.  Between February 2010 and February 2011, the number of regular beneficiaries fell by an estimated 34% in the region.

The total number of income beneficiaries⁶ with both regular and special benefits, such as for sickness or parental leave, declined by 8% between 2009 and 2010 as most of the decrease in income beneficiaries was the result of the decline in the number of regular beneficiaries, rather than those receiving special benefits.

Note: although this measure provides a useful gauge of unemployment it is an imperfect measure, as it excludes self-employed workers and individuals who were unemployed for more than 12 months.  At the Canadian level, the EI beneficiaries-to-unemployed ratio was fairly stable over time prior to the recession at between 40% and 45%. In Alberta, the ratio fell gradually during the economic boom years from more than 40% in 1996 to less than 25% in 2007 and the first nine months of 2008.  The ratio climbed to more than 40% in 2009 and was 36% in 2010.

Employment by Industry

In 2006, according to Statistics Canada’s census data, the services-producing sector in the Battle River region accounted for about 60% of the total number employed.  By comparison, the service sector accounted for 72% of Alberta’s employment.

The Agriculture⁷ industry employed the largest number of individuals.  This industry accounted for 17% of the region’s employment, much higher than the industry’s 4% share at the provincial level.  The region’s next largest industries in 2006 were the Healthcare and Social Assistance sector with an 11% share of regional employment and the Mining and the Oil and Gas sector with a 10% share.

Between 2001 and 2006, the Mining and Oil and Gas industry had the largest employment gain (up 1,020), mainly because of increased drilling activity.  Large increases of between 600 and 700 jobs were also noted for the Construction and Healthcare and Social Assistance sectors.  In the region’s largest industry, Agriculture, employment decreased by about 1,200.

Although estimates from the Labour Force Survey are not very reliable⁸ for the small regions, it is clear from the survey’s results that the Agriculture sector has seen a sharp decline in employment levels between 2006 and 2010, while Construction and Oil and Gas employment has declined since 2008.

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^{1 The employment rate measures the proportion of the adult population that is employed. Employment Rate = (Employed / Population 15+)*100. High labour utilization traditionally accompanies strong economic activity.
2 The participation rate measures the proportion of the adult population that is in the labour force. Participation Rate = (Labour Force / Population 15+)*100. High labour participation is an effective indicator of the level of engagement among the working age population and traditionally accompanies strong economic activity.
3 Due to sample size problems and there not being any population control totals for non-standard geographies
4 The number of beneficiaries receiving regular benefits excludes claimants receiving training, job creation and self-employment benefits as well as other employment and support measures benefits.
5 Some of this increase was the result of Canada’s Economic Action Plan providing beneficiaries with five extra weeks of regular EI benefits in 2009 and 2010.
6 The number of beneficiaries receiving total income benefits includes both the beneficiaries receiving regular benefits and those receiving special benefits, such as for training, job creation, sickness, parental.
7 Also includes forestry, but forestry sector has very few employees in the Battle River region
8 Due to sample size problems and there not being any population control totals for non-standard geographies}

 

Date Updated:
RDP-2481