Another Calgary business is closing its doors, as Alberta’s jobless rate rises.
Beat It Music, located on 17 Avenue S.W. will shut down at the end of August.
"I’ve been battling the Calgary economy for a lot of years," said owner Bob Everett. "Now I gotta walk away from something that was a jewel amongst stores."
Everett said his costs are minimal because he doesn’t have any employees, but still can’t afford to stay open.
“You can’t come walking home with a new set of drums when you didn’t buy groceries that week. I think there’s a lot of people out there that are hurting a lot more than they even want to admit,” said Everett.
According to the latest Labour Force Survey from Statistics Canada, 14,000 Albertans lost their jobs in July.
The unemployment rate rose by 0.4 percentage points to reach seven per cent.
StatsCan says employment decreased notably in accommodation and food services as well as natural resources.
Across Canada, the economy shed 24,200 jobs in July after a drop of 2,200 jobs in June.
The unemployment rate rose to 5.7 per cent nationally, up from a four decade low of 5.4 per cent in May.
Employment rates decreased in Alberta, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, said Statistics Canada and increased in Quebec and Prince Edward Island.
Employment held steady in the other provinces.
