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Touting Canada’s relatively low unemployment rate is a common refrain from the Trudeau government. For instance, Finance Minister Bill Morneau has repeatedly stated that “Canada’s unemployment rate is now the lowest it’s been in over 40 years” and “these are the real results of a plan that’s working.”

In reality, however, a broader assessment of Canada’s labour market performance shows things are not as rosy as Morneau suggests, particularly when measured against the United States. This is concerning because labour markets allocate our most valuable and productive resource: the work, effort and creativity of Canadians. When labour markets perform well, Canadian workers benefit from ample job opportunities, growing wages and a generally prosperous economy.

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Focusing exclusively on the unemployment rate, as Morneau does, simply does not provide a complete picture of Canada’s labour markets. With declining labour-force participation driven primarily by an aging population, the unemployment rate has become a less reliable measure. To properly judge the strength of Canada’s labour markets, it’s crucial to use a more comprehensive measure.