J21 - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure

• Beyond the averages: Measuring underlying wage growth using Labour Force Survey microdata

  Staff Analytical Note 2024-23 Fares Bounajm, Tessa Devakos, Gabriela Galassi

  When it comes to understanding the influence of labour costs on inflation, average wage growth is a misleading indicator because it is affected by composition effects. We propose an alternative measure that corrects for these effects by using microdata from the Labour Force Survey. Our new measure has many desirable properties, including reduced volatility and a better relationship with labour market fundamentals.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Topic(s): Econometric and statistical methods, Labour markets JEL Code(s): C, C3, C31, J, J2, J21, J3, J30, J31, J8, J82

• Benchmarks for assessing labour market health: 2023 update

  Staff Analytical Note 2023-7 Erik Ens, Kurt See, Corinne Luu

  We enhance benchmarks for assessing strength in the Canadian labour market. We find the labour market remains tight despite recent strong increases in labour supply, including among prime-working-age women. We also assess the anticipated easing in labour conditions in a context of high population growth.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Econometric and statistical methods, Labour markets, Monetary policy JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, J, J2, J21, J6

• Benchmarks for assessing labour market health

  Staff Analytical Note 2022-2 Erik Ens, Corinne Luu, Kurt See, Shu Lin Wee

  We propose a range of benchmarks for assessing labour market strength for monetary policy. This work builds on a previous framework that considers how diverse and segmented the labour market is. We apply these benchmarks to the Canadian labour market and find that it has more than recovered from the COVID-19 shock.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Econometric and statistical methods, Labour markets, Monetary policy JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, J, J2, J21, J6

• Assessing Labour Market Slack for Monetary Policy

  Staff Discussion Paper 2021-15 Erik Ens, Laurence Savoie-Chabot, Kurt See, Shu Lin Wee

  Measuring labour market slack is essential for central banks: without full employment in the economy, inflation will not stay close to target. We propose a comprehensive approach to assessing labour market slack that reflects the complexity and diversity of the labour market.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Econometric and statistical methods, Labour markets, Monetary policy JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, J, J2, J21, J6

• From He-Cession to She-Stimulus? The Labor Market Impact of Fiscal Policy Across Gender

  Staff Working Paper 2021-42 Alica Ida Bonk, Laure Simon

  The effects of fiscal policy shocks on labour market outcomes across gender depend on the type of public expenditure. Women benefit most from increases in the government wage bill, while men are the main beneficiaries of higher investment spending.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Fiscal policy, Labour markets JEL Code(s): E, E3, E32, E6, E62, J, J1, J16, J2, J21

• Adoption of Digital Technologies: Insights from a Global Survey Initiative

  Staff Discussion Paper 2021-7 James Fudurich, Lena Suchanek, Lise Pichette

  Firms are at the forefront of adopting new technology. Using survey data from a global network of central banks, we assess the effects of digitalization on firms’ pricing and employment decisions.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Firm dynamics, Inflation and prices, Labour markets JEL Code(s): D, D2, D22, E, E3, E31, J, J2, J21, O, O3, O33

• On the Evolution of Multiple Jobholding in Canada

  Staff Working Paper 2019-49 Olena Kostyshyna, Etienne Lalé

  The number of workers who hold more than one job (a.k.a. multiple jobholders) has increased recently in Canada. While this seems to echo the view that non-standard work arrangements are becoming pervasive, the increase has in fact been trivial compared with the long-run rise of multiple jobholding that has occurred since the mid-1970s.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Econometric and statistical methods, Labour markets JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, J, J2, J21, J22, J6, J60

• The Intergenerational Correlation of Employment: Is There a Role for Work Culture?

  Staff Working Paper 2019-33 Gabriela Galassi, David Koll, Lukas Mayr

  We document a substantial positive correlation of employment status between mothers and their children in the United States, linking data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) and the NLSY79 Children and Young Adults. After controlling for ability, education and wealth, a one-year increase in a mother’s employment is associated with six weeks more employment of her child on average.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Econometric and statistical methods, Economic models, Labour markets JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, J, J2, J21, J22, J6, J62

• Online Job Seekers in Canada: What Can We Learn from Bing Job Queries?

  Staff Analytical Note 2019-18 André Binette, Karyne B. Charbonneau, Nicholas Curtis, Gabriela Galassi, Scott Counts, Justin Cranshaw

  Labour markets in Canada and around the world are evolving rapidly with the digital economy. Traditional data are adapting gradually but are not yet able to provide timely information on this evolution.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Topic(s): Central bank research, Labour markets, Monetary policy JEL Code(s): C, C8, C80, E, E2, E24, J, J2, J21

• Local Labor Markets in Canada and the United States

  Staff Working Paper 2019-12 David Albouy, Alex Chernoff, Chandler Lutz, Casey Warman

  We examine local labor markets in the United States and Canada from 1990 to 2011 using comparable household and business data. Wage levels and inequality rise with city population in both countries, albeit less in Canada.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Labour markets JEL Code(s): J, J2, J21, J3, J31, J6, J61, N, N3, N32, R, R1, R12