The volatility of the monthly job numbers was clearly evident in the March figures.
They had Saskatchewan losing 4,300 positions in the month, a number that would be viewed as suspect by anyone who is hiring or looking for a job as the market is tilted heavily in favour of those seeking employment right now.
The breakdown also shows growth of full-time spots – that rose by 1,100 while part-time positions fell by ore than 5,000. That is the part where accuracy of the survey is most likely to be questioned.
The report also tracks our working age population on a month basis. It showed that March brought nearly 3,000 new adults to the province although fewer than half of them were willing to work so our workforce fell by a couple thousand.
A more accurate measure might be the year-over-year trend. On that one, the workforce grew by 7,000 people, the working-age population rose by more than 20,000 and full-time payrolls saw an increase of almost 9,000 – equivalent to the number working people in a city the size of North Battleford.
