The good news is that the number of jobs in Alberta went up by almost 92,000 in June. The bad news is that the unemployment rate remains at a record high 15.5 per cent as more people rejoined the labour force.

The Labour Force Survey results released this morning reflect labour market conditions during the week of June 14 to 20. Phase one of the reopening of the Alberta economy began a month earlier on May 14 with phase two starting on June 12.

As expected, the relaxation of public health restrictions enabled a large number of Albertans to either return to their old job or start a new one.

The journey back to where we were before the pandemic has, however, only just begun with the number of jobs in the province still down by 241,000 compared to February and by almost 266,000 compared to June 2019.

Full-time positions accounted for 79 per cent of the rise in employment.

Despite the improvement on the employment side of the equation, the rise in jobs did not keep up with demand. As a result, the number of unemployed Albertans increased by over 17,000 in June, bringing the total up to 382,500—more than double the tally in February.

July’s numbers will provide a better sense of how phase two of the reopening of the provincial economy has affected the labour market, but the lingering effects of the pandemic are expected to keep unemployment well above pre-pandemic levels for some time.