MNI DATA IMPACT: Stalling Job Growth Seen in StatsCan Survey

Three-quarters of Canadian firms don't plan any hiring in the next three months, a government survey Friday showed, more evidence the recovery has moved into a much slower phase after the strong early gains following the spring lockdown.

Another 10% of business owners intend to reduce payrolls, ahead of the 7% who plan to add workers, according to Statistics Canada's survey taken from mid-September to late October. That was a time when local health agencies stepped up a second round of restrictions on public gatherings that have even become tighter since then.

Job growth has already slowed and on Thursday the top Bank of Canada deputy Carolyn Wilkins warned more actions are needed to prevent permanent scarring in the labor market. Fourth-quarter GDP growth is already on the brink of stalling amid a new push from health officials to curb rising Covid-19 case loads.

Of the 37% of firms that laid off workers this year, only 54% have hired back at least half of their staff, Statistics Canada's report said.

Inflation pressures are also subdued with just 18% of firms planning to raise prices in the next three months, and 5% seeing price cuts. There's also evidence that business bankruptcies are ahead with 18% of owners saying they won't survive the next six months under current conditions, and 30% saying they were unsure how long they can last.