The unemployment rate in Lethbridge was 5.1 per cent in March. (Photo: Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

Unemployment rate in Lethbridge fairly flat at 5.1%

Apr 7, 2025 | 10:01 AM

While the provincial rate of unemployment increased this past month, things stayed about the same in Lethbridge.

Statistics Canada says 5.1 per cent of people in the Lethbridge Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), which includes some immediately-surrounding communities, were out of work in March 2025.

That is an increase of 0.1 per cent from the month prior.

The number of people who were employed grew by 400, while about 100 people stopped working.

The population of the Lethbridge CMA rose by 300 to 116,100.

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Among Alberta’s four largest cities, the Lethbridge CMA had the lowest unemployment rate.

It was the highest in Red Deer at 8.5 per cent (-0.9% from February) while Calgary and Edmonton were both fairly flat at 7.2 per cent.

Provincially, 7.1 per cent of Albertans who were able to work did not in March.

There was a sizable shift away from full-time work as those positions declined by 30,000 while there was a gain of 14,900 part-time jobs.

Some Albertan industries that saw job growth include construction (+5,700), natural resources (+5,600), and transportation and warehousing (+4,700).

On the other hand, jobs in manufacturing (-11,800), wholesale and retail trade (-9,200), and accommodation and food services (-6,600) were down.

On a national basis, the economy had its biggest job loss since January 2022, bringing the unemployment rate to 6.7 per cent.

The full labour force survey can be found on Statistics Canada.

READ MORE: Canadian economy lost 33,000 jobs in March, biggest loss since 2022

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