chapter 5 Economic Indicators

http://www2.canada.com/news/canada+economy+loses+jobs+january/1260456/story.html?id=1260456

Summary:
Canada’s economy had lost approximately 129,000 jobs in the month of January which causes the unemployment rate increase from 6.6% to 7.2%. The Canadian Press reports were expecting a much better unemployment rate result like 40,000 but the limit far exceeded that prediction. This decline in employment rate is by far the worst monthly drop over the past couple of years. The majority of manufacturing jobs were lost in Ontario, a drop of 36,000 positions. Another province that followed shortly was Quebec at 30,000 positions. Employment also fell in transportation and warehouse, losing about 30,000 jobs. Ontario losing so many positions is the province’s largest decline in over three decades.

Connections:
A main connection between article and chapter five is unemployment rate. The term is defined as the percentage of labour force that is not working but is looking for work. In this article, Ontario has a high percentage of unemployment rates with about 36,000 lost positions. One of the reasons why the unemployment rate is so low is because it comes from the lost jobs from employment in manufacturing where the total amount was 101,000. The employment probably did not require so many workers. In order to calculate the percentage of the unemployment rate, the following formula must be used:
Unemployment rate = unemployed / labour force

Reflections:
I find it hard to believe how the unemployment rate increased so much in January. If there is no changes soon made, recession would only look like it would continue to worsen as it grows deeper. The government should promote more job opportunities such as big projects like buildings. For one, this can help those jobless people work again, and second it can make Canada a better looking country. For example: I think there could be more transportation vehicles like buses or sky trains which can enhance our community and make Vancouver look more cleaner with less polluted air. On the other hand, it also makes Canada look like the economy is growing and strengthening.