The unemployment rate in western Alberta has again gone up. The number of people looking for work in the economic region that houses Grande Prairie has gone up to 7.8 per cent from 7.5 in April. It was 6.2 last May.
The province’s rate has also jumped to a 30 year high at almost two percentage points higher than where it was last year. It’s sitting at 7.8 per cent, up from 7-.2 the month before and 5.9 in May 2015. More than 24,000 jobs were lost in Alberta in June, mainly in the resource and construction sectors.
At the same time, Canada’s jobless rate has dropped to its lowest level since July of last year. Thanks to the country adding 14,000 jobs, it’s now at 6.9 per cent.