Agencies – The Canadian Statistics Authority says the unemployment rate fell in April to another record level with an increase of 15,300 jobs.

The unemployment rate reached 5.2 percent for April, compared to the record level recorded in March of 5.3 percent.

Meanwhile, Doug Porter, Chief Economist at the Bank of Montreal, said that moderate gains in employment indicate a return to normal, but this will do nothing to deter the Bank of Canada from raising the interest rate, especially with high inflation.

It is noteworthy that the unemployment rate dropped to its lowest level since at least 1976, "the last year for which official data is available."

The number of jobs in professional, scientific, and technical services increased by 15,000 in April, and by 17,000 in the category of public administration.

The number of retail workers decreased by 22,000 in April, and in construction by 21,000.

The Canadian Statistics Authority says that the number of part-time workers decreased.

The average hourly wage increased by 3.3 percent year-over-year in April, compared to 3.4 percent in March, according to the Canadian Statistics Authority.

The authority also pointed out that the percentage of those earning less than $20 per hour in April accounted for 25.9 percent of all employees, down from 35.5 percent in April 2019.

At the same time, employees earning $40 or more per hour represented 24.5 percent of employees, up from 18.0 percent three years ago.

Total hours worked in April decreased by 1.9 percent compared to March, partly due to absences from work due to illness. A snowstorm in Manitoba also affected working hours in that province.