Ottawa region loses 100 jobs in August
Ottawa lost around 100 jobs in August, marking the second month in a row that the region has shed positions.
However, a much larger decline in the labour force meant the unemployment rate fell to 5.2 per cent, down from 5.5 per cent the month before. Jobs are measured on a three-month moving average basis.
The participation rate in the local labour force also slid to 71 per cent from 71.3 per cent in July.
Ottawa lost around 1,600 jobs in July after adding around 2,600 jobs in June.
However, Statistics Canada notes it only considers a local job loss or gain of 3,700 jobs to be significant. The last that happened was in September 2010, when the region lost 4,000 jobs.
Nationally, Canada lost jobs for the first time in nearly half a year as unemployment increased to 7.3 per cent in August, up 0.1 percentage points.
The country shed 5,500 positions. Economy consensus pegged a job gain of 25,000 in the education sector as students returned to school, but the largest increases came in health and social assistance.
Full-time employment across the country increased by 25,700 and part-time work declined by 31,200.
– With files from The Canadian Press