Saskatchewan unemployment rate falls to eight-year low

Saskatchewan’s unemployment rate fell in June to its lowest level since November of 2014.

According to Statistics Canada, Saskatchewan’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in June was 3.9 per cent, second only in the country to Manitoba’s rate of 3.8 per cent.

Canada’s unemployment rate fell 0.2 percentage points last month to a new record low of 4.9 per cent.

The unemployment rate in Saskatchewan dropped from 6.6 per cent in June of 2021, and was down from 4.8 per cent in May.

The rate in Regina fell from 5.7 per cent in May to 5.2 per cent in June, while the rate in Saskatoon dropped from 4.7 per cent in May to 4.4 per cent last month.

Saskatchewan added 22,300 jobs in June, an increase of 3.9 per cent from June of 2021. The increase was entirely in full-time jobs.

According to the provincial government, Saskatchewan set all-time records last month in overall employment (592,900), female employment (276,300), off-reserve Indigenous employment (67,400), and off-reserve Indigenous full-time employment (55,700).

Large year-over-year gains were reported in health care and social assistance (up 8,200 jobs), construction (up 4,000 jobs), and accommodation and food services (an increase of 3,400 jobs).

Saskatchewan’s seasonally adjusted employment total of 577,800 in June was higher than the province’s pre-COVID employment level of 574,100 in February of 2020.