‘Tariff uncertainty’ — Windsor regains title as Canada jobless capital

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Even before layoffs with tens of thousands of workers at the temporary idle Windsor assembly plant this week, the region has regained its title as the unemployed capital of Canada.

According to Statistics Canada, local unemployment fell by 0.1 in March, but remains a stubborn 9.3%.

The national unemployment rate rose 0.1 to 6.7% last month, while provincial interest rates rose 0.2 to 7.5%.

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“Unfortunately, we have regained the crown of Canada’s highest tax rate,” said Justin Falconer, CEO of Workforce Windsoressex.

“I expect some job losses. We’ve seen 600 people employed in March.

“It’s a silver lining that (local) unemployment has dropped, while Ontario and federal rates have risen.”

Although the local population increased by 300 residents to 409,200, the labor force lost 1,100 people. That was a reversal of the trend of the workforce growing to record levels in recent months.

Participation and employment rates also fell by 0.2 points, to 65.3% and 59.2% respectively.

“The threat of tariffs creates uncertainty in the community,” Falcona said. “Somewhat nervous, we see evidence.”

Falconner said commercial traffic on local border traffic is increasing, while non-commercial traffic is declining. He attributed it to companies that stock products and over-produced before new tariffs.

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“Even if it costs more money, companies are willing to bear more inventory because these expenses will be less than the tariffs,” Falconer said. “We definitely see evidence of inventory behavior.”

Some highlights of work growth

Although the total in March is usually negative, there are some bright spots for job growth.

The manufacturing industry has added 400 jobs in the sector, to 52,800. This is the largest number of people in manufacturing since August 2018 (52,900).

Construction also continues to employ 200 employees in the industry, thus continuing to find jobs. There are now 17,000 people working under construction, compared to 14,600 in March 2024.

Wholesale/retail and accommodation/food services added 1,000 jobs, respectively, while finance, real estate and insurance added 700 jobs.

The biggest unemployment is medical/social assistance (1,200), transportation and warehousing (800).

Falconer prepared for some ugly numbers in April as the full impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’s buffet penetrated through local economy.

“If the tariffs are still appropriate, I hope to see negative consequences in the labor market,” Falcona said.

“I want to see silence when ordering new things. The labor market is known to deteriorate.”

dwaddell@postmedia.com

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