Unemployment Down Across Atlantic Canada
HALIFAX—Unemployment was down across Atlantic Canada in November.
According to Statistics Canada, both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick saw their unemployment rates go down last month, although neither drop was significant.
In Nova Scotia, 8.1 percent of the working population went without a job last month. That’s compared to 8.3 percent in October.
The jobless rate was pushed down in the province thanks in part to 2,500 new jobs created in the construction sector.
Those gains helped offset the 2,000 jobs lost in the accommodation and food service industry, as well as 1,800 lost in forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas.
New Brunswick, meanwhile, saw its unemployment rate drop from 9.1 percent in October to 8.5 percent in November.
There, the manufacturing industry was the biggest job creator, adding 1,300 positions. Wholesale and retail trade, meanwhile, lost almost 2,000 positions.
Both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick still have far more unemployed residents than the rest of Canada. Across the country, the unemployment rate dropped to 6 percent in November. That’s down from 6.7 percent in October.
Statistics Canada says the nation’s unemployment rate is nearly back to where it was in February 2020, just before the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
Unemployment Lower In Cities
In Atlantic Canadian cities, the percentage of working people without jobs stayed relatively steady.
Halifax saw its unemployment rate tick down to 6.4 percent last month, versus 6.5 percent in October.
In Moncton, the unemployment rate stayed almost the same, shifting from 6.9 percent in October to 7 percent in November. Saint John, meanwhile, saw its unemployment rate rise slightly, from 8.4 percent to 8.5 percent.
Statistics Canada does not show Fredericton-specific data.