The unemployment rate in the Midwestern Ontario area fell again in July, down 0.6 percentage points to five per cent.
The latest findings for the Stratford-Bruce Peninsula Economic Region indicated that while employment dipped slightly, the labour force size has shrunk even more.
Dana Skirten, CEO of the Four County Labour Market Planning Board, mentioned that there’s nothing concerning in these figures, but the aging population remains a worry.
“We have been chronically one of the lowest unemployment rates in Ontario for over 10 years,” she stated. “We continue to monitor the participation rate. I don’t like seeing that going down. We are not the lowest participation rate in Ontario, but we do definitely keep an eye on that.”
This February, the Planning Board a report analyzing various job market elements that affect whether young people stay or leave the region.
She pointed out that rural areas often lose youth due to out-migration as they seek training opportunities, but they’re actively exploring strategies employers can implement to encourage them to return. They are also looking at how immigration can help offset the aging demographic.
An additional focus for the planning board is monitoring job losses in health care after raising concerns in their June report.
Skirten remarked that although some believe the numbers don’t accurately represent reality, more detailed breakdowns available later revealed which sectors were impacted.
“We looked and its mainly in the ambulatory and the residential care areas that we saw the biggest losses,” she explained. “We’ll continue to watch that; we’re hoping it rebounds.. health care is definitely one of the sectors we’re watching and we’re going to have to dig into why.”
Currently, there are over 1,300 job postings available for this region at www. connect2JOBS. ca.
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