Alberta's unemployment rate spiked in April, Calgary's too

A stock photo of someone working in an office. (Pexels/Marc Mueller)

Alberta's unemployment rate jumped sharply in April, as did Calgary's.

Statistics Canada released its April 2024 Labour Force Survey on Friday, which showed Alberta's unemployment climbing from 6.3 per cent to sit at an even seven per cent.

"While employment in Alberta was little changed in April, there were more people searching for work, pushing the unemployment rate," Statistics Canada said.

The jump means Alberta is now tied with New Brunswick as the province with the second-highest jobless rate.

Calgary's unemployment, meanwhile, spiked to 7.7 per cent in April from 6.5 per cent in March.

Calgary is now tied with Toronto as the metropolitan area with the third-highest jobless rate nationally.

In Edmonton, unemployment remained unchanged in April, sitting at 6.4 per cent.

In Lethbridge, it dropped two-tenths of a percentage point to sit at 6.4 per cent compared to 6.6. per cent the month prior.

The national unemployment rate was 6.1 per cent in April.

The Labour Force Survey examined the week of April 14 to 20.