Wages and salaries

Alberta Employment and Immigration commissions a detailed wage and salary survey every two years.  The survey provides information on wages and salaries for full-time and part-time employees in Alberta by occupation, geographic area and industry¹.  The latest survey was conducted in 2009 and for the first time wage and salary estimates have been prepared for Alberta’s 14 economic regions. 

In 2009, the average hourly wage was $20.96 in the Palliser region², 13.9% less than the Alberta average of $24.34 per hour. 

The industry in the region with the largest number of reported employees was healthcare and social services, followed by retail trade and public administration (federal, provincial and municipal government).  The industry with the highest average wage was the public administration industry at $30.37 per hour, followed by oil and gas at $30.16.  The accommodation and food services industry had the lowest average wage at $10.81 per hour.

The average number of hours worked per week was 37.2 for the region and 37.3 for all of Alberta.  The industry with the most average hours per employee was the transportation and warehousing sector at 46.9 hours.    

Labour shortage issues are not confined to Alberta’s urban core.  The Palliser region had a 3.4% vacancy rate³ in 2009, compared with Alberta’s 3.0%.  Moreover, the region also reported more hiring difficulties⁴ than Alberta (49% versus 41%).  Labour shortages were particularly acute in accommodation and food services. 

¹ http://alis.alberta.ca/wageinfo 
² The number of survey respondents for small regions may be too small to provide accurate overall wage estimates
³ The percentage of total positions in this industry reported as unfilled for over four months
⁴ Percent of employers with hiring difficulties with

 

Date Updated:
RDP-2409