The rate of employment growth in Canada slowed in January, as the new year signalled a period of change, and unemployment rates hit a nine month high in the country.

Last month, Statistics Canada reported an unemployment figure of 7.5 per cent, but a slow rate of growth meant that this figure crept up ever so slightly to 7.6 per cent in January of this year.

However, there was still some good news, as the number of jobs did continue to grow, even if slowly. Statistics Canada reported that the number of people in employment in the country rose by 39,200 in the month.

The biggest gains sector was education, which gained 22,800 jobs.

The rate of growth in Canada was in contrast to the US, where it was reported that employment numbers increased by an unprecedented 243,000 in January alone, bringing unemployment levels to their lowest in three years.

Posted by Fiona Summers