there was steady expansion in employment in the textile industry, the thread, yarn, cloth, hosiery and knitting branches, especially, showing activity. During December, however, the tendency was downward and the improvement recorded early in January was not sufficient to restore employment to the level it had attained during the autumn. Tobacco factories showed the decided losses in staffs usual to the December and January holidays and inventories though the movement during October and November was also downward. There was considerably less activity in coal mining in Nova Scotia and British Columbia, but in the Alberta coal fields the situation showed improvement. Building contractors reported the declines incidental to the autumn and winter, and highway construction, mainly in Ontario, afforded employment for a much smaller number of men than during the preceding quarter. The transportation group as whole was considerably slacker, the losses in the railway and shipping and stevedoring divisions being particularly heavy. Employment on street and electric railways was in lesser volume also. The decided expansion recorded in retail trade owing to Christmas buying during November and December was counterbalanced by the

equally large reductions in sales force reported in the early part of January. Telephones and telegraphs afforded less employment, particularly the former. Glass, brick, cement, soap, electrical apparatus, electric current, musical instrument, brass, bronze, copper and baking powder factories and petroleum refineries registered reductions in employment, though the losses were somewhat less pronounced than those recorded above. While practically all provinces shared in the declines reported in the various groups for the quarter under review, the contractions in Ontario and Quebec in most cases exceeded those indicated elsewhere.

At the end of the period under review employment in leather, edible plant, rubber, fur and textile factories and in street railway and cartage and shipping and stevedoring divisions was in greater volume than during the same period of last year. All other groups reported less activity, operations being especially curtailed in pulp and paper, non-ferrous metal products, communication, and construction and maintenance.

A summary of employment conditions during the period December 18 to January 15 appears also in the regular monthly article on page 123 of this issue.

THE present article on unemployment among the members of local trade unions deals with the situation reported during the quarter ending December 31, 1921. The unemployment registered at the close of October was 7.4 per cent of the membership reported, or slightly over one per cent less than in September; during November and December, however, the improvement noted during the

preceding month was not maintained and the situation gradually become less favourable until at the close of December the percentage of idleness stood at 15.1. For the corresponding period of 1920 the percentage had stood at 13.1. (Unemployment as used here has reference to involuntary idleness due to economic causes. Persons occupied in work other than their own trades, or who are idle

because of sickness, or as a direct result of strikes or lockouts, are not considered as unemployed. As the number of unions making returns varies from month to month with consequent variation in membership upon which the percentage of unemployment is based, it should be understood that such figures have reference only to the unions reporting.) Employment in manufacturing, transportation, and building construction declined. steadily during the quarter, the contraction in the last two indicating to some extent seasonal dullness. There was, however, increased activity in mining particularly in the coal fields in Alberta.

The accompanying chart shows the curve of unemployment as reported by trade unions by quarters for 1916-17-18 and by months for 1919-20-21. Unemployment declined constantly from March, 1921, until October, the per

centage at the end of October being only 7.4 as compared with 16.5 at the end of March. From October, however, unemployment increased steadily, although at the end of December it was not as pronounced as during the period from February to May. Conditions during the whole of 1921 compared very unfavourably with those registered during the preceding year.

During the quarter under review the situation in the Maritime provinces was on the whole better than in other provinces. Quebec and British Columbia reported particularly large percentages of idleness. of idleness. On the whole, there was less activity in every district than during October, November and December of the preceding year, although unions in the Maritime provinces, Ontario and Alberta indicated less slackness for the period under review than at the end of Decem

Dec. 1915 .20

Canada.

7 9.54 8.1 3.2 7.0 4.3 14.79 7.93 June 1916 .49 .88 1.83 1.67 1.2 2.6 3.03 5.80 2.13 Dec. 1916 .29 .23 3.70 1.56 1.01 1.63 1.70 2.43 1.96 June 1917 .25 .22 2.50 94 .58 .25 .84 1.80 1.20 Dec. 1917 2.64 4.14 3.19 2.45 1.07 2.41 1.55 3.18 2.56 June 1918 1.17 .27 45 37 29 18 .39 .92 .41 Dec. 1918 2.02 .42 2.17 2.92 1.31 2.15 2.07 4.02 2.51 Jan. 1919 1.25 .84 3.93 4.58 3.62 5.73 1.97 5.05 3.87 Feb. 1919 5.68 2.73 4.92 5.50 2.82 4.47 4.16 7.79 5.23 Mar. 1919 2.18 2.97 3.90 6.67 1.20 5.31 3.56 8.22 5.00 April 1919 2.41 2.46 4.39 4.27 1.65 3.95 2.26 10.07 4.44 May 1919 4.66 3.38 5.26 2.61 1.47 2.86 1.43 4.92 3.63 June 1919 2.69 2.43 4.00 1.81 1.19 2.51 1.68 3.37 2.58 July 1919 4.13 1.48 2.54 1.52 Aug. 1919 5.44 1.53 2.72 1.26 Sept. 1919 1.53 1.09 2.28 1.42

.92 2.77 1.90 5.82 2.43 .81 1.95 1.09 4.06 2.19 .73 1.29 94 3.98 1.79 Oct. 1919 3.19 1.37 2.50 81 1.28 .59 .93 5.02 2.03 Nov. 1919 1.21 1.57 2.88 2.04 2.07 1.20 .52 17.06 3.58 Dec. 1919 1.47 2.02 3.20 1.90 4.97 6.01 2.79 18.62 4.29 Jan. 1920 2.72 3.97 3.41 2.66 4.50 4.92 4.01 11.78 4.02 Feb. 1920 5.08 2.37 2.31 2.91 4.62 5.24 5.12 10.21 3.96 Mar. 1920 1.88 3.06 3.25 2.34 3.18 4.03 2.06 7.60 3.13 April 1920 .61 1.03 2 56 2.27 2.71 3.19 1.71 6.01 2.52 May 1920 .38 .53 3.96 1.70 2.63 1.32 1.49 5.57 2.40 June 1920 .56 .40 3.05 1.60 1.41 2.15 1.15 5.81 2.14 July 1920 10 20 2.85 1.51 1.33 89 1.43 9.25 2.35 Aug. 1920 .26 1.02 4.50 1.73 .31 .53 .67 4.66 2.37 Sept. 1920 .25 .10 7.59 1.89 49 .14 .55 5.09 3.26 Oct. 1920 .34 .42 9.54 3.01 3.34 34 83 15.65 6.09 Nov. 1920 2.21 45 14.73 6.39 4.32 4.13 3.62 24.70 10.24 Dec. 1920 6.90 11 00 19.57 12.29 7.76 10.13 9.24 11.59 13.05 Jan. 1921 5.85 8.11 13.27 14 16 8.81 10.09 9.72 21.56 13.07 Feb. 1921 14.35 7 30 10.72 14.76 9.85 12.07 10 34 42.08 16.12 Mar 1921 17.88 11 68 16.88 12.98 10.54 12.07 9.77 34.59 16.48 April 1921 21.56 12 44 20.70 11 91 11.07 12.83 12.67 25.67 16.27 May 1921 12.85 6 22 26 54 9.14 10.39 9.38 11.96 21.67 15.46 June 1921 14.26 11.66 20.70 6.74 7.99 6.81 9.37 24.44 13.16 July 1921 12.23 10.86 8.68 7.83 6.61 4.85 6.26 16.72 9.10 Aug. 1921 7.39 8.34 11 48 8.01 3.54 3.08 4.76 12.73 8.71 Sept. 1921 8.68 6.99 13 80 6.22 3.92 2.51 2.98 12.48 8.47 Oct. 1921 2.76 5.63 10.66 5.73 4.16 3.26 4.03 14.81 7.42 Nov. 1921 6.92 5.73 20.81 6.05 8.47 5.49 5.89 18.04 11.06 Dec. 1921 5.90 6.91 26.83 9.66 15.51 10.41 6.79 24.70 15.09

portation, mining and building construction afforded decidedly less employment; and fishermen, lumber workers and loggers were a great deal slacker.

During November, unemployment in the manufacturing group increased by over 6 per cent, mainly on account of inactivity for workers in the metals, textiles, pulp and paper industries. Leather and glass workers also registered higher percentages of idleness than during November of 1920. The clothing trades recorded practically the same percentage of unemployment, while the situation reported by workers in the food, jewellery and printing groups showed improvement. Transportation workers were slightly less fully employed and in the mining group there was a large increase in slackness. Tradesmen in the building and construction industries reported about 5 per cent more unemployment. Fishermen continued to indicate a very much less favourable situation. On the other hand, the percentage of idleness reported by lumber workers and loggers was considerably smaller than that registered at the end of November, 1920.

Numerous shutdowns over Christmas and New Year's Day materially affected employment in the manufacturing industries during December, the slackness being particularly marked in the metal trades. Workers in the printing group reported considerably more idleness than in December, 1920, but textile, pulp, paper and leather workers were a great deal busier. Transportation, especially steam railways, afforded much less employment; mining, fishing, lumber working and logging also were not active. On the other hand, unions in building construction reported a

Month

TABLE II-PERCENTAGES OF UNEMPLOYMENT IN TRADE UNIONS BY GROUPS OF INDUSTRIES.

Manufacturing and Mechanical Industries.

Metals, Machinery and Conveyances.

Textiles, Carpets and Cordage. Liquors.

Food, Tobacco and

Clothing.

Pulp, Paper and Fibre.

Printing, Publishing and Paper Goods.

Woodworking and Furniture.

Leather, Boots, Shoes, and Rubber.

Glass Bottle Blowing.

Jewelry Working.

Oil Refining.

Transportation.

Steam Railways.

Street and Electric Railways.

Navigation.

Teaming and Driving,

Mining, Quarrying and Refining of Ores.

Building and Construction.

Public Employment.

Fishing.

Lumbering and Logging.

Miscellaneous.

All Occupations.