The latest job numbers released by Statistics Canada show that the unemployment rate in southeast Saskatchewan increased in July. The labour force survey, which came out on Friday, had the unemployment rate up to 5.8 per cent in July, which was a jump from 5.2 per cent in June.
The Regina-Moose Mountain economic region, which includes Estevan, saw 400 more people working in July compared to June. However, there was also an increase of 1500 in the number of unemployed people, offsetting any of the gains. While the unemployment rate was up month-to-month, it was steady year-over-year.
The biggest changes came in Regina, where 200 more people were working, but 1200 more people were unemployed. This saw the unemployment rate for hte capital city go from 5.3 per cent in June to 6 per cent in July. The areas outside of Regina in the region, including Weyburn, saw the unemployment rate go from 4.8 per cent to 5.4 per cent, according to the data from Statistics Canada.
The Regina-Moose Mountain economic region also had the highest unemployment rate in the province. The lowest unemployment rate was in the Swift Current-Moose Jaw economic region, where it was 2.4 per cent.
Provincially, the unemployment rate was up slightly, going from 4.9 per cent to 5 per cent. Despite this small increase, the unemployment rate in Saskatchewan was the lowest in the nation.