The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Industry, Economic Development and Mines Minister Scott Smith yesterday welcomed the release of the most recent Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey that indicated the Manitoba economy set an all-time record for employment in the month of February. "Although the Manitoba economy has faced a number of challenges over the past year including BSE, forest fires in Northern Manitoba and the low Canadian dollar, today's Statistics Canada report indicates that the provincial economy continues to perform well," said Smith. "We are encouraged by these numbers and will continue to focus our efforts on creating the right conditions to support job creation and economic growth." According to Statistics Canada, a record level of 573,000 Manitobans was employed in February. In the last 12 months, an additional 6,300 new jobs were created in the province. Smith noted that, over the last four years, Manitoba's employment has grown by an average annual rate of 6,500, which is more than double the increase between 1989 and 1999 when it was 3,182 jobs. Statistics Canada also reported that: Manitoba's unemployment rate was 4.8 per cent, the lowest among the provinces and well below the national average of 7.4 per cent; Manitoba's youth unemployment rate was 9.3 per cent, the lowest among the provinces and nearly five percentage points below the national average of 14.1 per cent; and Smith said that, since 1999, more than 92 per cent of the jobs created in Manitoba have been full-time. "Our government is committed to developing an economic climate that helps to create full-time jobs and today's numbers suggest we are making good progress. "Over the last four years, the Manitoba economy has experienced sustained economic growth and job creation. We are pleased with the performance of the economy and are committed to build upon this momentum into the future."
