Overall about 20% of Canadian employers will increase their payroll while five per cent anticipate cutbacks and 75% plan no change. Over 1,900 employers were surveyed.

The outlook was better in the West due to an upbeat hiring climate from April through June. Ontario and Quebec will see more modest gains.

Declining gold prices and lack of financing has been hammering miners.

Creative Commons image of the Creswell Colliery by Dunc(an)