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EI beneficiaries fall in July for first time in 11 months
 
 
September 28, 2009 

 
Sandra Guevara-Holguin, a counsellor at the Community Unemployed Help 
Centre in Winnipeg, says she witnesses daily the pain the EI system 
causes women scrambling to meet the demands of family life and the need 
to have an income.
 
Sandra Guevara-Holguin, a counsellor at the Community Unemployed Help 
Centre in Winnipeg, says she witnesses daily the pain the EI system 
causes women scrambling to meet the demands of family life and the need 
to have an income.
Photograph by: John Woods, Canwest News Service

OTTAWA � The number of people receiving employment insurance benefits 
fell 3.8 per cent in July from the month before, the first decrease in 
11 months, Statistics Canada reported Monday.

The largest declines were reported in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta and 
the number of people receiving benefits fell by 31,500 to 787,700 
nationally, the federal agency said.

Despite the July reprieve, the total number of regular beneficiaries 
was still up 57.4 per cent, or by 287,400, above the level of October 
2008.

"On the whole, we are encouraged by this report, and believe that it is 
a reflection of the improving fortunes in the Canadian labour market 
and the Canadian economy more generally," said TD Securities economics 
strategist Millan Mulraine.

"However, given that the labour market remains a lagging indicator of 
economic activity, we are likely to see only modest improvements in the 
employment situation in the coming months, even though the economy has 
began the slow process of economic recovery."

In Ontario, the number of beneficiaries fell 5.9 per cent, or by 
16,800, to 266,800. In Quebec, the number of beneficiaries declined 5.3 
per cent, or by 11,000, to 197,700. In Alberta the number fell 4.4 per 
cent, or by 2,700, to 59,500.