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By David Opinko

Alberta has added 73,000 jobs since Sept. 2023

Mar 8, 2024 | 2:09 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – New numbers from Statistics Canada show Alberta has been a leader in employment growth.

Between September 2023 and February 2024, the agency reported that 73,000 jobs have been added in the province, including 17,400 in January-February alone.

When accounting for an increase in population of 11,500, Alberta’s unemployment rate stayed flat at 6.2 per cent.

A total of 2,530,100 people were employed in Alberta as of February this year.

Minister of Jobs, Economy, and Trade Matt Jones spoke about the province’s economic strength.

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“While Alberta only accounts for 11.7 per cent of Canada’s population, our province leads the nation in net employment growth, with 42.8 per cent of the country’s employment gains. With a highly skilled workforce, business-friendly policies, diversified economy and affordable, exceptional lifestyle, Alberta continues to be the economic engine of Canada,” said Jones.

He added, “Our province leads the nation in net employment growth and last week, the Canadian Survey on Business Confidence showed optimism among Alberta businesses was up considerably over the last 12 months, out-pacing the rest of the country.”

The industries with the largest jobs gains over the past month in Alberta include construction (+12,000), wholesale and retail trade (+11,500), and professional, scientific and technical services (+7,400).

On the other hand, sectors such as healthcare and social assistance (-6,900), educational services (-6,600), and information, culture and recreation (-5,200) saw declines.

However, as 1,200 people exited the labour pool, the unemployment rate rose from 5.3 per cent to 6.3 per cent in February.

More details on the unemployment figures are on the Statistics Canada website.