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Canadian Earnings Slip

November 28, 2011

Average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees in Canada fell 0.3 percent to C$872.75 (US$844.98) in September, partly offsetting an increase in August, Statistics Canada reported Friday. The average number of hours worked weekly rose 0.3 percent in September from August.

However, average weekly earnings rose 1.1 percent on a year-over-year basis. The year-over-year increase, the smallest increase since November 2009, reflects a number of factors, such as wage growth and changes in the composition of employment by industry, by occupation and by level of job experience.

Average weekly earnings rose year over year in every province except Ontario and Nova Scotia. The largest increases occurred in Saskatchewan, which rose 6.9 percent to C$906.22 in September. Next was Prince Edward Island, with earnings increasing 5.1 percent over the same period to C$745.81; however, earnings in the province were the lowest among the provinces.

Newfoundland and Labrador saw earnings rise 4.6 percent year over year to C$884.66. Earnings in this province have grown at a higher rate than the national average since December 2010.

In Ontario, year-over-year earnings fell 1.3 percent from C$901.16 to C$889.13.