The Canadian Federation of Independent Business says the job vacancy rate in Canada is at a record high of 3.2 per cent for the fourth quarter in a row. In this province, the private sector job vacancy rate dropped slightly, by 0.1, to 2.1 per cent. It represents 74 hundred unfilled jobs. Vacancy rates rose in five provinces and remained stable or declined slightly in the others. Firms with fewer than five employees were the hardest hit, reaching a job vacancy rate of 5.4 per cent. According to the CFIB, employers with at least one vacancy expected to push average organization-wide wage levels up by 2.3 per cent compared to 1.5 per cent planned by businesses without any job openings. CFIB is asking all parties to commit to measures tackling labour shortages in the upcoming federal election.