Amid the economic downturn being seen worldwide, Canada’s jobless rate has risen to 6.6% in December after losing 34,000 jobs in the month.
According to Statistics Canada, the big loss was the result of a drop of 70,000 full-time jobs, offset somewhat by a rise in the number of people working part-time. As a result of these jobless numbers, Canada’s Finance Minister, Jim Flaherty has indicated that Canada is “in for a very difficult year” as he continues to take suggestions on what to include in the January 2009 budget.
According to economists, this rise in the jobless rate is an early warning sign of a recession.
Statistics Canada has indicated that a major factor contributing to the jobless rate was poor performance in the construction industry, with 44,000 jobs lost in this sector. This has been the largest single drop in this area in more than 30 years. The province of Alberta showed the loss of 59,400 jobs as the oil industry continues to suffer through turmoil.
The December job losses comes after more than 71,000 jobs were lost during the month of November.
Newfoundland and Labrador leads the country with an unemployment rate of 13.7%, well above the 5.3% seen in British Columbia, and still well above the national average of 6.6%.
