Alberta job numbers are way up.
According to the May 2022 Labour Force Survey, our province added 60,600 full-time jobs last month, all while unemployment plummeted to 5.3 per cent, its lowest level since 2014.
This marks seven straight months of job growth across a wide variety of economic sectors. Not just energy jobs, one news story noted that job growth in scientific and technical services, as well as transportation and warehousing, made-up most of our job gains.
Alberta is truly back. Of all the jobs created across the country last month, Alberta accounted for 69 per cent of that growth. Additionally, a recent report by Statistics Canada showed that at $1,264, Albertans are currently enjoying the highest average weekly earnings in the country. Albertans are working more, and they are earning more too!
These numbers are good news for all Albertans and mean that our economy is on the rebound and well on its way to a full recovery. Alberta’s Recovery Plan is truly working to diversify the economy and create good jobs for Alberta families, and Alberta is once again the economic engine of Canada, as well as a lighthouse of opportunity for all those seeking economic prosperity from across the country and world.
Our United Conservative government is continuing to work to fast-track Alberta’s economic recovery. Our Alberta Jobs Now and Alberta at Work programs are helping to empower everyday Albertans by giving them the tools they need to build fulfilling and lasting careers. These programs have been widely successful in helping to address labour challenges. We have also seen a significant decline in long-term unemployment and expect that trend to continue.
If we zoom out, the picture gets even more optimistic. Since January of 2021, Alberta has created 198,200 net new jobs, despite facing a global pandemic. This job growth stands in stark contrast to the hundreds of thousands of jobs the Notley NDP lost with no pandemic at all. While we have further to go, our United Conservative government has officially undone the damage done by the Notley NDP.
Alberta’s economy is starting to boom, and our people are going back to work. Alberta’s unemployment rate is lower today than at any point under the disastrous Notley NDP. And our conservative fiscal policies have allowed us to balance the budget for only the second time in over ten years.
It has been a long two years for many Albertans, but good times are quickly coming back. More than anything, credit must be given to Albertans for all their hard work and sacrifice. Albertans are the strongest and most innovative people in the world, and Alberta’s economic success is a testament to that.
— Mark Smith, MLA for Drayton Valley – Devon