It’s probably too soon to call it a trend, but alarmists might see a recent rise in the local unemployment rate as cause for concern.
Results of a Statistics Canada survey that were issued by Alberta Employment and Immigration on Friday indicate that the jobless rate in the Red Deer region hit 6.7 per cent last month. That’s up from 6.2 per cent in March and 5.3 per cent in February, and gives this area the highest unemployment figure in the province.
Last April, the unemployment rate for the Red Deer region was 7.9 per cent.
Charles Strachey, a regional communications manager with Alberta Employment and Immigration, said the annual spring slowdown in the oil and gas sector undoubtedly affected last month’s stats.
“Right now there’s only 73 out of 577 rigs working,” he pointed out. “That’s compared to 400 here just a couple months ago.”
In addition to those working on the rigs, spring breakup affects other people like truck drivers, said Strachey.
“This is an increase in the unemployment rate that we anticipate every year, especially in Red Deer.”
Another sector in which local employment appears lower is residential construction, said Strachey.
“I think there’s not as many construction jobs right now.”
However, he stressed that the region is not suffering from a shortage of employment opportunities.
“There are over 1,200 jobs on the (Canada-Alberta) Job Bank for the Red Deer area right now.”
Energy companies are among those hiring, said Strachey, with plenty of restaurant, health care, retail, mechanics, landscaping and other jobs also posted.
Meanwhile, the number of job-seekers visiting the Red Deer Labour Market Information Centre declined from nearly 10,000 in March to about 9,100 in April, said Strachey. And attendance at a mini job fair held at the centre this week was about half of that at a similar event last month.
“Not as many people seem to be looking for work,” he said.
Statistics Canada’s monthly unemployment figures are based on relatively small surveys, pointed out Strachey. These can suggest short-term fluctuations in employment that aren’t indicative of the longer trend.
Elsewhere in Alberta, the unadjusted unemployment rate in the Lethbridge-Medicine Hat region last month was 6.6 per cent, up 0.9 percentage points; Edmonton’s rate was 6.1 per cent, up 0.1 percentage points; Calgary came in at six per cent, down 0.1 percentage points; Athabasca-Grande Prairie was at 5.4 per cent, down 0.5 percentage points; Wood Buffalo-Cold Lake was at 5.1 per cent, up 0.1 percentage points; Camrose-Drumheller was at 4.7 per cent, down 0.1 percentage points; and Banff-Jasper-Rocky Mountain House had the lowest unemployment rate at 2.8 per cent, down from 4.6 per cent in March.
The seasonally adjusted rate for the province in April was 5.9 per cent, up 0.2 percentage points from March.
Saskatchewan and Manitoba had the lowest unemployment rates in Canada last month, at five and 5.2 per cent respectively. The national average was 7.6 per cent.
Alberta Employment and Immigration noted that the provincial labour force increased by 1,900 last month, while employment decreased by 4,200. Part-time employment decreased by 13,300 but full-time employment was up by 9,100.
hrichards@www.reddeeradvocate.com