The most obvious form of labour market information is information about job vacancies. It is also pretty obvious why this information is essential to a successful job search or career decisions. You have to know where the job openings are if you want to sell your labour to someone. Employment and unemployment rates can also be important types of labour market information for somebody looking for work. Comparing unemployment rates in different areas can give you a general indication of the overall strength of their economies.
Employment rates can be an even better indicator of the state of the economy in different areas.
For example, the unemployment rate in one area may be lower than another because less people are looking for work in the first area. But levels of employment will tell you if more jobs are being created in one geographical area or another, regardless of the overall unemployment rate. Employment information about specific industries is also valuable when choosing a career path. For example, if you were to look at Alberta employment information by industry, you would find some industries that are growing faster than others. A look at employment in the service industries would show quite an increase in the last few years, while a look at employment levels in public administration fields would show a decrease.