PG sees slight growth in January jobless numbers

OTTAWA – The numbers out of Statistics Canada show a slight uptick in the January unemployment rate for Prince George, at 5.9 percent compared to 5.4 percent in December and 3.4 percent in January of 2022. The slight rise once again, was due to slightly fewer people working last month, and slightly more looking for work.

Provincially, the jobless rate climbed to 4.4 percent in January from 4.1 in December, but dropped from 5.1 percent, the same time last year.

With 153,000 people joining the labour force last month, the national unemployment rate held steady at five per cent, hovering just above the record low of 4.9 per cent.

The Canadian economy has been on an upward trend with employment since September, adding a total of 326,000 jobs. That’s despite forecasters anticipating higher interest rates will slow the economy down significantly this year and weigh on employment.