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Alberta’s economy lost 117,100 jobs in March, the worst recorded single-month change on record, according to Statistics Canada.
New numbers released by the federal agency on Thursday reflect the early impacts of the economic toll of COVID-19 on the province as well as the country as a whole, which lost over a million jobs during the same period.
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‘Shocking to see’: Alberta loses 117,000 jobs in March amid COVID-19 Back to video
The numbers reflect labour market conditions during the week of March 15 to 21, by which time travel restrictions and public health measures directing Canadians to limit public interactions had already been put in place. However, public health measures and restrictions on non-essential businesses have intensified since then.
“We need to understand, this is just the beginning. . . I anticipate much more challenging figures at the end of April and as we move into the spring,” Premier Jason Kenney told reporters.
According to Statistics Canada, the province’s overall unemployment rate went from 7.2 per cent in February to 8.7 per cent in March while the national average went from 5.6 per cent to 7.8 per cent. However, only individuals who are actively looking for work are counted as “unemployed,” and many people who lost jobs in March were not looking for a new one due to business closures or COVID-19 containment efforts.
