The unemployment rate in western Alberta has dropped two per cent in the past year. Statistics Canada says the rate for the economic region that houses Grande Prairie and Peace River was 5.8 per cent in July 2017, down from 7.8 per cent in July 2016.
The last time numbers were this low was in November 2016, when the rate was 5.4 per cent. It was 6.3 this past June. However, the numbers aren’t seasonally adjusted.
Nation-wide, the jobless rate has fallen to the lowest it’s been since the start of Canada’s financial crisis nine years ago. It sits at 6.3 per cent, which hasn’t been seen since October 2008.
10,900 net new jobs were added last month, following booms of 45,300 in June and 54,500 in May. Alberta lost 14,000 jobs and saw its unemployment rate rise from 7.4 per cent in June to 7.8 per cent in July.