Alberta's jobless rate surges in July
In July 2021, Alberta witnessed a significant increase in unemployment, with the unemployment rate climbing to 7.8%, up from 6.8% in June. This rise was primarily due to a sharp drop in employment, particularly full-time jobs and youth employment.
Employment declined by approximately 16,800 people in Alberta, with a substantial loss of 38,400 full-time jobs, primarily in goods-producing industries such as construction, natural resources, and agriculture. Youth employment (ages 16-24) saw a dramatic fall of 33,700 jobs, pushing youth unemployment to its highest level since 2010.
The labor force also grew by 12,400, meaning more people were looking for work while fewer were employed, causing the unemployment rate to jump. This spike in unemployment also reflected an increase in labor force participation, with more people actively seeking work but unable to find full-time positions.
Part-time jobs increased by 21,600, somewhat offsetting the full-time job losses. However, the private sector saw most job losses, while the public sector and self-employment were mostly unchanged.
In contrast to Alberta, British Columbia was the only province to record a decrease in unemployment rate, dropping from 5.4% to 5.3% in July, despite losing 1,200 jobs. Saskatchewan, on the other hand, had the lowest unemployment rate amongst all provinces at 5%. In contrast to the national trend, Saskatchewan gained 3,500 jobs in July.
The unemployment rate in Ontario and Quebec remained unchanged at 7.4% and 6.5% respectively. Amongst all cities in Alberta, Lethbridge had the highest unemployment rate in July, followed by Edmonton and Calgary, which both saw an increase in their unemployment rates compared to June. Red Deer was the only city where the unemployment rate decreased slightly.
Nationally, the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 6.9% in July, while Canada lost 41,000 jobs. Alberta's job losses in July were more than the combined job losses in Ontario and Quebec.
This employment drop partly reversed gains from June, and seasonality factors likely played a role in the unusually weak youth hiring in July. The unemployment rate in Lethbridge jumped from 5.2% in June to 5.7% in July, while in Red Deer, it declined slightly from 5.5% in June to 5.4% in July. In Calgary and Edmonton, the unemployment rate increased from 7.4% and 7.5% respectively in June to 7.7% and 7.9% in July.
In summary, the July 2021 unemployment increase in Alberta was driven by large full-time job losses in construction, natural resources, and agriculture, a steep drop in youth employment, an increase in labor force participation leading to more unemployed job seekers, and seasonal hiring patterns delaying usual summer job growth.
In July 2021, the decline in employment in Alberta significantly impacted the business sector, with a loss of approximately 38,400 full-time jobs primarily in goods-producing industries like construction, natural resources, and agriculture. Furthermore, the finance sector might also be affected due to the increase in labor force participation, as more people are actively seeking work but finding it difficult to secure full-time positions.
