Employment surges by 44,000, aided by federal election hiring

The country’s economy added a sharply higher than expected number of new jobs in October, snapping months of sluggish employment gains, Statistics Canada said Friday.

The federal agency said employment climbed by 44,000 positions last month, sending the jobless rate down one tenth of a percentage point, to 7 per cent.

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Economists had been expecting a monthly gain of 10,000 jobs. Much of the gains came in the form of part-time work, the agency said, while the number of public administration jobs soared — a likely reflection of hiring that took place for the federal election on Oct. 19.

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Public administration employment jumped by 32,000 jobs in the month. “The increase was seen across all provinces and mostly in temporary work, coinciding with activities related to the recent federal election,” Statscan said.