Job market soaring in Alberta, but wage growth still sluggish

Alberta's red-hot labour market added more than 30,000 jobs last month, leading all other provinces and posting the highest total in several years.

Alberta's unemployment rate dipped to 6.7 per cent in December, dropping by 1.2 per cent from a month prior, according to a Statistics Canada jobs report released on Friday.

The trend follows a national pattern that saw the Canadian economy add 91,000 jobs, with Alberta posting the majority of the gains.

Calgary and Edmonton added roughly 20,000 and 11,000 jobs respectively, on a three-month average basis.

According to the report, most job gains were in construction and manufacturing.

The numbers represent Alberta's strongest increase in employment since 2021 and the province was the driver of the majority of job gains nationwide at 40 per cent. 

The unemployment rate was also the lowest it's been in months, with numbers not seen since March 2024.

"The increase of 90,000 [nationally] in December is quite strong by historical standards. So it's very positive for the economy," said Charles St-Arnaud, chief economist at Credit Union Central Alberta.

"The numbers in Alberta are even stronger than nationally... after months of having an unemployment rate number above the rest of the country, we're now more in line with others."

Wages grew in Alberta by 2.5 per cent compared to one year ago, but continued to increase at a lower rate compared to the rest of the country, St-Arnaud said.

Calgary Economic Development (CED) echoed St-Arnaud's comments, saying the trend is positive for the city.

In a statement, the organization noted newcomers are getting into the labour force, adding it's growing faster than the city's population and leading to an increase in the participation rate.

"This positive trend signals a stronger position for Calgary as we face a year of looming geopolitical uncertainty," said Kate Koplovich, director of strategy with CED.

"We'll be keeping a close watch on how this impacts our economy and job market in the year ahead."