Alberta loses 14,000 jobs in February
The collapse in oil prices continues to hit Alberta’s labour market with employment in the province falling by 14,000 in February, pushing the unemployment rate up 0.8 percentage points to 5.3 per cent, the highest since September 2011, said Statistics Canada.
The federal agency reported Friday that employment losses were in a number of industries, but most notably in the natural resources sector which alone shed 7,000 positions last month.
Since hitting a peak in September 2014, employment in the sector has decreased by 20,000 jobs, or 11 per cent.
Other losses last month also occurred in the retail and wholesale trade; professional, scientific and technical services; as well as manufacturing sectors.
The Edmonton census metropolitan area saw its unemployment rate hold steady at 4.8 per cent in February, compared to January.
Edmonton-region jobs increased by 4,800, or 0.6 per cent, from January.
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