Alberta’s unemployment rate remained steady at 6.7 per cent in August, according to new data released by Statistics Canada on Friday.
“Employment in Alberta increased by 16,000 … as more people participated in the labour market,” the federal agency said on its website. “Compared with August 2017, employment grew by 53,000 (+2.3 per cent), mostly in full-time work.”
The provincial capital’s unemployment rate went down slightly in August. Edmonton sits at 6.4 per cent, down from 6.5 per cent.
Meanwhile, down Highway 2 in Calgary, the city saw an increase from 7.9 per cent to 8.2 per cent in August. Calgary has the second highest unemployment rate in the country, next to St. John’s, N.L.
LISTEN: University of Calgary associate professor Trevor Tombe interprets the latest jobless numbers for Rob Breakenridge
There were 4,300 fewer people employed in Calgary in August, the agency told Global News. From August 2017 to August 2018 there were 14,500 fewer people employed in Calgary.
The agency said this doesn’t necessarily mean jobs have disappeared in the province, it’s just for whatever reason, those people are no longer active in the workforce.
The national unemployment rate was pegged at 6.0 per cent, up from 5.8 per cent in July.
The federal agency said the national economy lost 51,600 jobs in August.
Statistics Canada cautioned that the figures may fluctuate widely because they are based on small statistical samples.
LISTEN: Pierre Cleroux of the Business Development Bank of Canada joins Danielle Smith to discuss the labour shortages resulting from demographic changes
— With files from the Canadian Press
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