Saskatchewan’s unemployment rate falls to 2nd lowest in Canada

Saskatchewan’s employment figures continue to be strong, according to Statistics Canada’s monthly jobs report.

The province added 3,900 jobs in March, pushing the unemployment rate down nearly a full percentage point to 4.9 per cent – the lowest rate since August 2015.

This puts Saskatchewan at the second lowest unemployment rate in the country, behind British Columbia’s 4.7 per cent.

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The national average for unemployment has held steady throughout 2019 at 5.8 per cent.

Based on Stats Canada’s industry sector breakdown, agriculture has seen the strongest year-over-year growth with 3,500 jobs.

Other strong areas of growth include accommodation and food service (2,600 jobs), education services (2,500 jobs), plus business, building and support services (2,500 jobs).

On the flip side, wholesale and retail trade has suffered the heaviest year-over-year losses, at 4,800 jobs. Transportation and warehousing shed 2,600 jobs and the natural resource sector lost 2,500.