The London-St. Thomas jobless rate rose slightly in February, edging up to 5.1 per cent from 5.0 per cent in January, according to Statistics Canada.
The increase came as the region added 900 jobs with 1,100 people entering the workforce last month, up from 312,900 reported in January, while another 200 people started claiming unemployment.
The participation rate also rose marginally to 65.2 per cent in February, up from 65.1 per cent the previous month.
Nationally, Canada’s unemployment rate held steady as Statistics Canada said that there was “little change” to the country’s employment rate.
The agency said employers added 22,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.0 per cent, remaining just above the record low rate of 4.9 per cent observed last June and July.