Unemployment rate rises 0.3%

Unemployment in the Wood Buffalo — Cold Lake region rose 0.3 per cent, from 7.4 in July to 7.7 in August.

The total employed people in the region increased slightly to 72 per cent.

Nationally the labour market posted its ninth-straight month of job gains in August to give the economy its longest monthly growth streak since before the financial crisis nine years ago.

Statistics Canada says last month’s increase of 22,200 jobs also helped nudge the unemployment rate down from 6.3 per cent in July to a nine-year low of 6.2 per cent.

Looking at the bigger picture, however, the latest numbers show the labour market expanded 2.1 per cent compared to a year earlier with the addition of 374,300 net new jobs.

The agency also says wages grew 1.8 per cent last month compared to a year earlier for the biggest increase since last October.