The Cariboo region ended 2020 with an unemployment rate of 9.3 percent.
Vincent Ferrao, a Labour Market Analyst with Stats Canada, says that is up from 6.8 percent in December of 2019, but down from 9.8 percent in November.
Ferrao says the big reason for the year over year increase however, is not because there were a lot less people working…
“We have almost 78,000 people working, 77,800. Very little change from the same time a year ago. It was 78,700 a year ago, so not a statistically significant change.”
Ferrao says the main reason for the increase in the unemployment rate is that there were a lot more people looking for work.
He says there was only slight movement within the various sectors…
“The biggest mover would be health care and social assistance. That industry employed about 14,500 people this December, for three month average ending in December. A year ago it was about 11,100. Declines we have other services, which includes personal services, hair care, beauty salons, that sort of activity.”
BC’s unemployment rate in December was 7.2 percent.
That is second only to Quebec at 6.7.
Alberta’s jobless rate is at an even 11 percent.
PROVINCIAL UNEMPLOYMENT RATES IN CANADA
Quebec 6.7 percent
BC 7.2
Saskatchewan 7.8
Manitoba 8.2
Nova Scotia 8.6
New Brunswick 9.3
Ontario 9.5
PEI 10.1
Alberta 11.0
Newfoundland 12.3
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