The Quebec labor market may be regaining a certain balance. The number of vacant positions fell by 7.7% in the second quarter in Quebec, falling below 200,000 for the first time since 2021.
This is a sign that the balance is being restored between demand and supply of labor in the Quebec economy, according to the Institut du Québec.
The number of vacant positions is declining in most Canadian provinces. In Quebec, their number decreased by 16,400 to 195,700. Quebec remains one of the provinces with the largest number of positions to be filled, with British Columbia.
The decrease in the number of vacant positions in Quebec is accompanied by a slowdown in the growth of salaries offered to fill these jobs. At over 10% at the end of 2022, average hourly wage growth increased to 6.6% at the end of the second quarter of 2023.
The imbalance between labor demand and supply is less acute, but it persists because the Quebec population is increasingly educated while most vacant positions require few qualifications, according to the Institut du Quebec.
Currently, there are 43,000 unemployed people with a university degree for only 26,000 vacancies that require such a qualification. Conversely, 68,000 positions without required qualifications are vacant, for 47,000 unemployed people who could occupy them.
