After a brief bounceback in 2012 and 2013, local unemployment rates are once again returning to pre-recession levels.
Figures released Friday by Statistics Canada peg Waterloo Region’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for March at 5.5 per cent.
That’s the same place it sat in February, and in November 2013 – but before that, it was the sort of number last seen in the fall of 2008.
Brantford’s unemployment rate fell to 5.4 per cent, its lowest mark since December 2013, while Guelph tallied its lowest figure since July 12, with unemployment for March said to be 4.8 per cent.
Across Canada, unemployment held steady at 6.8 per cent in March, as the country picked up nearly 29,000 net jobs.
The gain, Statistics Canada found, was mainly driven by an increase in part-time jobs.
While 28,200 full-time positions were lost in March, 56,800 new part-time positions were created.
New jobs were primarily in fields like retail, transportation, warehousing and education, while there were fewer people working in construction, agriculture and public administration.
Those figures matched the expectations of most analysts.
"The bar was set pretty low for this employment release and it managed to clear it," Bank of Montreal chief economist Douglas Porter said in a note to investors.
"While the details were mixed, at best, any gain is better than the alternative given how the economy struggled out of the gate in 2015. Overall, the point is that the labour market is grinding out very modest gains amid an economy that is grinding out very modest growth."
Other economists say the job numbers lessen the likelihood of an interest rate cut in the coming weeks.
Through the first quarter of 2015, Canada’s economy has picked up 63,000 net new jobs – almost all of them in part-time positions, and mainly filled by people aged 55 and older.
With files from The Canadian Press
