From a curious Canadian would you say unemployment really is 5% like the official numbers say?
It can’t possibly be 5%; wages would move if that was true. The fact is that it is a meaningless figure as reported by the government (due to how it is calculated).
One of the creepiest omens in 2007/2008 was how quickly the classified ads shrank from several pages to less than half a page (with the same happening to online job postings); that situation hasn’t changed. There are always ads, but these are not “regular” jobs. The number of people working part-time has gone up because there is nothing available, and I believe the government considers them “employed” - despite the fact that they are bankrupt and receiving food stamps.