Unemployment among young men in Alberta is on the rise according to Statistics Canada.
By November of this year, 20% of young men in the province were unemployed. The rate is double what it was in April.
According to University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe, the trend represents the largest spike in Alberta outside of a recession.
“What I think is concerning but also difficult to explain is why we’ve seen a continued deterioration of the employment rate,” said Tombe.
“So typically when the recession ends, employment rates stop falling. But for men under the age of 25, their employment rate has just kept on declining.”
Alberta has struggled to recover from a downturn in its economy, largely fuelled by crashing oil prices and a failing energy sector.
According to the Financial Post, business insolvencies in the province are up 70% from its 2015 rate.
When polled on the situation, business owners are saying that the situation is only getting worse. In Calgary, a total of 89% of businesses claimed that the economic situation in the city is deteriorating.
In February 2019, Calgary had the highest unemployment rate in all of Canada reporting an unemployment rate of 7.6%. Prior to the oil price crash, Calgary had an unemployment rate of 4.5%.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney will be meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau later this afternoon to discuss the province’s situation and future.
Kenney is expected to bring a list of five demands to Trudeau which includes a plan to increase provincial revenues, changes to environmental rules and a deadline on the Trans Mountain pipeline.
