Unemployment rate in GP area drops while Canada sees spike

Dec 6, 2019 | 11:29 AM

The unemployment rate in the Grande Prairie area saw a slight decrease for the month of November, while the country as a whole saw the biggest monthly job loss since the financial crisis.

The area that includes Grande Prairie saw a drop to 5.7%, down from 5.8% in October.

Meanwhile, Statistics Canada says the Canadian economy lost 71,200 jobs last month and the unemployment rate rose to 5.9% compared with 5.5% in October.

The loss in jobs came as both full-time and part-time employment moved lower. The number of full-time jobs fell by 38,400, while part-time employment fell 32,800.

Most areas in Alberta posted a decrease in their unemployment rates; in fact, all areas did except for Edmonton, which saw a jump in it’s seasonally adjusted rate to 7.7% from 7.1% the previous month.

Province-wide, the rate jumped from 6.7% up to 7.2% last month.

Alberta as a whole did post a loss of 18,200 jobs in the month of November, as did B.C.

Quebec took the largest hit, losing 45,100 jobs due to a decline in manufacturing, accommodation and food services.

-With files from The Canadian Press

by Shaun Penner