London-St. Thomas jobless rate for Dec. 2021 is lowest since pandemic began
Global News
The jobless rate for December was 5.7 per cent, down from 6.4 per cent in November, and the lowest figure since 5.8 per cent was recorded for March 2020.
The London-St. Thomas unemployment rate fell for the sixth consecutive month in December, reaching a 2021 low and falling to the lowest level seen since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The jobless rate for December was 5.7 per cent, down from 6.4 per cent in November, and the lowest figure since March 2020. However, while some capacity limits were reintroduced in late-December, the data predates the bulk of restrictions implemented this week in response to the spread of the Omicron variant.
The jobless rate for March 2020 was 5.8 per cent, up from 4.9 per cent in February 2020, but while the pandemic was declared March 11, 2020, a state of emergency in Ontario wasn’t issued until March 17, 2020.
The latest figures from Statistics Canada show 3,500 jobs were added last month while 1,700 additional people entered the labour force. The number of people who claimed unemployment insurance because they are actively looking for work fell by 1,800.
The participation rate, which measures the proportion of the working-age population that is working or looking for work, climbed slightly to 65.8 per cent in December, up from 65.5 per cent in November.
Nationally, Statistics Canada reported the economy added 55,000 jobs in December and the unemployment rate was 5.9 per cent, down from 6.0 per cent in November.
— with a file from the Canadian Press.
The agency says more than 22,000 people have been removed from the country in the last 12 months, and nearly 30,000 removals were "in progress" as of Oct. 31.
A problem with the signalling system caused a service interruption this morning on Montreal's light-rail network.
An Ontario lawyer accused by American authorities of advising a Canadian Olympian-turned-alleged-cocaine kingpin has had his licence to practice law suspended.
The FIFA draw ceremony will mark the first time Prime Minister Mark Carney, U.S. President Donald Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum will be in the same room.
A new report finds anglophones face higher unemployment and lower wages in Quebec; gaps that researchers say carry major economic consequences.
Critics are questioning the solidity of Saab's pitch to deliver 10,000 jobs in Canada if it decides to set up shop here to assemble Gripen fighter jets.
The girl’s disappearance underscores long-standing concerns about the ease with which a parent can take a child to another country without the other parent’s knowledge or consent.
Asbestos cleanup, tight work windows and other TTC delays have slowed the build out of 5G cellular service in Toronto's subway system.
Alberta's UCP government is changing the rules to make it easier for citizens to force a referendum on issues such as the prospect of the province leaving Confederation.
An at-home DNA test given as a birthday gift solved an 80-year family mystery by revealing that a man in Quebec and a man in the Netherlands were long-lost brothers.
Lina Vargas was on the board for almost two years and told Global News that accountability and transparency are fundamental rights for all community members.
Industry Minister Melanie Joly told the House of Commons committee on international trade the move breaches federal contracts tied to manufacturing in Brampton and Windsor, Ont.
A targeted home invasion and kidnapping led to a gunpoint standoff with police and an overnight chase across Toronto. Two suspects remain at large, investigators say.