Portside

In a weak macroeconomy, the employment rate is a better indicator of labour market strength, since it avoids the arbitrary distinction regarding whether someone is sufficiently "active" in their job search to qualify as being officially "in" the labour market. The erosion of Canada's labour market performance over the last couple of years is not surprising in light of the general stagnation of the main drivers of economic growth in our system.

It’s easy to see that the crisis has wounded the country in ways big and small, and that the damage isn’t done even now. Here are five charts that capture the scope and struggles of the Great Recession, five years after it began: