In Australia, companies cut jobs in April, a month after the Australian government’s wage subsidy came to an end. However, unemployment rate also dipped as lesser number of people sought work. About 30,600 jobs were shed, and about 64,400 part-time roles vanished. But there was improvement in terms of full-time jobs. The rate of joblessness dipped to 5.5 per cent given the fact that the participation rate grew to 66 per cent from 66.3 per cent.
Meanwhile, in Canada, about 3.5 lakh non-farm jobs were added from March to April, as per a report based on payroll data. While over 13,000 jobs were created in the manufacturing space, over 29,000 were added in construction, 2,400 in mining and natural resources, 73,000 in trade/transportation and utilities, over 7,000 in finance and real estate, more than 36,000 in professional/business services and over 52,000 in the education and healthcare space. Least number of jobs were added in the information sector.
Despite various pandemic-induced restrictions, the Canadian labour market shows an upward trend, for the third month in a row.
In the US, payroll growth in April was way less than expected. Europe too is expected to find it challenging to offer jobs to the unemployed. With mobility restrictions in place, travel across borders will be a problem for workers. While job fairs have had to be cancelled, the number of overseas students in the universities has also decreased. Add to this the Brexit-imposed restrictions to movement of labour, and things don’t look too bright on the employment front.
