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By Brian Konrad

Surprising job surge in August

Alberta’s unemployment rate ticks higher despite job surge nationally

Sep 6, 2019 | 7:48 AM

OTTAWA – Canada’s economy posted a job surge last month of 81,100 net new positions, the bulk of which were part time, in the services sector and picked up by young people.

Statistics Canada says that even with the increase the August unemployment rate stayed at 5.7 per cent near a four-decade low as more people looked for work.

Alberta’s unemployment rate was up to 7.2 per cent from 7 per cent in July.

The regional unemployment rate for the Medicine Hat and Lethbridge region was higher in August.

It went from 6.4 per cent in July to 7.1 per cent in August.

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A year ago the regional unemployment rate was 5.1 per cent.

6 thousand jobs were lost in forestry, fishing, mining and oil and gas sectors in Alberta last month

Saskatchewan saw it’s unemployment rate fall to 5.1 per cent from 5.4 per cent in July.

Year-over-year average hourly wage growth for all employees slowed to 3.7 per cent last month, decelerating from July’s 4.5 per cent pace that was the strongest monthly reading since January 2009.

The agency’s latest labour force survey says the country saw a rush last month of 73,300 new positions in services industries and a boost of 94,300 jobs in the private sector.

The report says 57,200 of the new jobs were part time and 42,000 of the positions were held by young workers aged 15 to 24 years old.

Economists had expected an addition of 15,000 jobs and an unemployment rate of 5.7 per cent, according to the financial markets data firm Refinitiv.