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Job Numbers

Lethbridge-Medicine Hat’s unemployment rate rises in August

Sep 6, 2019 | 8:45 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The jobless rate went up in the Lethbridge area last month.

In August, the unemployment rate for the Lethbridge-Medicine Hat economic region was listed at 7.1 per cent, up from 6.4 per cent in July 2019.

However, the region did not see the highest unemployment rate in Alberta last month. That distinction went to Edmonton, with a jobless rate of 7.8 per cent. That’s up from 7.7 per cent in July.

Here’s how Alberta’s economic regions broke down last month (previous month’s rate in brackets):

· Wood Buffalo-Cold Lake: 6.3 per cent (5.9)

· Edmonton: 7.8 per cent (7.7)

· Red Deer: 7.3 per cent (7.4)

· Banff-Jasper-Rocky Mountain House and Athabasca-Grand Prairie-Peace River: 5.4 per cent (5.2)

· Calgary: 7.4 per cent (6.5)

· Camrose-Drumheller: 5.6 per cent (6.4)

· Lethbridge-Medicine Hat: 7.1 per cent (6.4)

As a whole, Alberta’s unemployment rate for the month of August was 7.2 per cent, up from 7.0 per cent in July.

For youths aged 15-24 (male and female), the rate was at 13.5 per cent. As for adults aged 25 and over (male and female), the jobless rate was listed at 6.3 per cent for August.

Further details can be found through the Government of Alberta’s website here.

CANADA

Across Canada, the unemployment rate for August 2019 was listed at 5.7 per cent, remaining unchanged from July.

READ MORE: Canada sees gains in part-time, youth employment as wage growth slows

The Canadian economy posted a job surge of 81,100 net new positions. 57,200 of the new jobs were part-time, while 42,000 were held by young workers aged 15 to 24 years old.