Payroll earnings up 2.8 per cent on annual basis in December

OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees averaged $908 in December, up 0.3 per cent from November.

The agency says earnings were 2.8 per cent higher on a year-over-year basis.

It says this annual increase reflects a number of factors, including wage growth, changes in composition of employment by industry, occupation and level of job experience, as well as average hours worked per week.

In December, non-farm payroll employees worked an average of 32.8 hours per week, unchanged from 12 months earlier but down from 33.1 in November.

Year-over-year growth in average weekly earnings outpaced the national average in five of the largest industrial sectors, led by professional, scientific and technical services, health care and social assistance and manufacturing.

Year-over-year earnings growth was above the national average in seven provinces, with the highest growth in Saskatchewan, where earnings rose five per cent to $936.