Newly released data from the 2016 census reveals an unfortunate trend in the Town of Prescott.
According to the census data the town is over 14 per cent behind the province in terms of both employment and participation rates, with Prescott at 45.7 and 50.4 per cent respectively.
It is worth noting that since these numbers were collected employment opportunities in the area have emerged, including the opening of the Giant Tiger distribution centre. Also, almost a third of Prescott’s citizens are over the age of 65 and less than 100 identified as being employed. This could help explain the gap in employment rate, because almost 66 per cent of residents between the ages of 24-65 did identify as employed.
This does not explain why the unemployment rate in the Town of Prescott is around 9.5 per cent, putting it a full two points higher than the provincial average. Citizens over 65 who did not identify as employed identified as “not in the labour force”, which would not affect the unemployment rate.
To see all the census information for Prescott, and other parts of the country, click here.
