Quarter of Sask. firms planning layoffs: CFIB

While about a third of Saskatchewan companies claim to be thriving as the province emerges from a natural resource downturn, almost a quarter of locally owned businesses say they are planning to cut staff in the coming months.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) reported on Thursday that the owners of 23 per cent of Saskatchewan businesses say they will lay off staff members through the first part of 2018, compared to just 15 per cent nationally.

“It is … concerning to see shortterm employment plans deteriorating even more,” Marilyn Braun-Pollon, the CFIB’s vice-president for the Prairies, said in a statement.

She described the figure as a “record high” for the province.

The CFIB said that while its monthly business barometer index — which measures confidence in the economy — is virtually unchanged from October, it remains the third-lowest in the country at 52.3. According to the CFIB, which has around 110,000 members nationwide, the index operates on a scale from zero to 100, with anything over 50 indicating business owners expect their companies to grow over the next year. That is reflected in the small number of local businesses — 10 per cent, compared to 14 per cent nationally — planning to increase employment in a market where almost half of all companies are struggling with insufficient domestic demand, the CFIB said.

“Only 10 per cent of owners are looking to hire in the next three months,” Braun-Pollon said. “The top cost pressures for Saskatchewan entrepreneurs are tax and regulatory costs, cited by 64 per cent of respondents, (which) is also at an all-time high.” Postmedia News