National job postings return to pre-pandemic levels for first time since onset

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Published March 16, 2021 at 11:40 pm

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It seems the Canadian job market is finally starting to rebound since the onset of the pandemic.

As of mid-March, for the first time since the start of the pandemic, year-over-year job postings entered positive territory, according to new data released today by Eluta.ca—job search engine, operated by Mediacorp Canada Inc.

Last year, during the months of March and April, wide-spread lockdowns resulted in a decline in new job postings, and forced businesses to lay off employees due to closures.

Since then, while job postings have been on an upward trajectory—although slow—they had yet to reach positive territory until March 9.

“It’s worth pausing to reflect on the significance of this milestone for Canada’s economy,” Anthony Meehan, Publisher at Mediacorp, said in a news release.

“The pandemic has taken a heavy toll in this country and around the world. But for the first time since the pandemic arrived, we can say to Canadians that there are more jobs available now than a year ago.  There has been a catastrophic loss of employment in several sectors—particularly hospitality, personal services and travel—but we now see the signs that employers in the rest of the economy are recovering and confidence is returning,” he continued.

However, while the national numbers are finally back in the positive, that’s not the case for Canada’s most populated province, as Ontario still lags behind.

“On a regional basis, there have been significant differences in the pace of the recovery across Canada,” Kristen Chow, managing director of Publishing at Mediacorp, said in the same release.

“The pandemic reduced new job postings in Ontario more than the national average, although the province has nearly closed the gap in the past few months,” she added.

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