The number of available job openings in this province took a big jump in December.
The latest report on payroll activity – this goes hand-in-hand with the jobs report each month when analyzing labor conditions in a marketplace – showed Saskatchewan is once again one of the best places to find a job.
Our vacancy rate – that is the number of jobs that have been generated by employers but are yet to be filled – rose by 2,500 in the month. That was second only to Alberta which is three times our size.
This translates into 17,500 open positions in the province which represents 3.4-percent of the total workforce, second only to BC where housing is expensive making it difficult for employers to find workers.
According to StatsCan, the sectors with the greatest number of openings are food service and accommodation, healthcare, transportation and agriculture.
Saskatchewan employers have responded by raising pay packets. The latest report suggests wages went up a full percentage point in December, the highest increase in Canada, making pay 6-percent higher than a year earlier.
