Labour force

According to Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS), the North East region’s employment rate1 for the working age population of 15 years and older was 70.6% in 2010 and the participation rate2 was 73.6%.  By comparison, Alberta’s employment and participation rates were lower at 68.1% and 72.9%, respectively.

The region’s unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in 2010, down from 4.6% in 2009.  This rate is much lower than the provincial average of 6.5% for 2010 and was the lowest regional rate in Alberta. 

In 2010, the number of people employed in Alberta declined by 0.4% or by 8,600, after a 1.4% decline in 2009, due to the global recession.  Employment in the North East region increased by an estimated 400 jobs in 2010.  In 2010, the North East Region made up 2.9% of Alberta’s working age population (15+ years), down from a 3.3% share in 2006. 

Between 2006 and 2010, the region’s working age population (15+) declined by an estimated 3,600, while employment fell by 1,400. 

Between census years 2001 and 2006, the number of people employed in Alberta grew by 14.7% or by 239,800.  Over the same period, employment in the North East region grew by an estimated 4,500 or 9.0%.  In 2006, the North East Region made up 3.0% of Alberta’s working age population (15+ years), and the region’s increase in employment between 2001 and 2006 accounted for 1.9% of all new jobs created in Alberta over that period. 

According to the 2006 census, the level of educational attainment is lower for this region than for Alberta. For the working aged population of between 25 and 64 years, 36.8% had a post-secondary degree or diploma, compared with 48.1% for all of Alberta. However, the region does have a larger share holding a trades certificate: 16.7% in the region vs. 12.4% in Alberta.  21.8% of the region’s working age population did not finish high school, higher than the Alberta average of 15.4%.

Employment Insurance Beneficiaries

In 2010, 1,550 people received regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits3 in the North East region, a 4% decline from the 2009 number of 1,610 4.  Over the same period, the number of EI recipients fell by 9% in Alberta.  As a result, the region’s share of Alberta EI recipients rose to 3.3%.  Between February 2010 and February 2011, the number of regular beneficiaries fell by an estimated 18% in the region.

The total number of income beneficiaries5 with both regular and special benefits, such as for sickness or parental leave, fell by 3% between 2009 and 2010.

Note: although this measure provides a useful gauge of unemployment it is an imperfect measure, as it excludes self-employed workers and individuals who were unemployed for more than 12 months.  At the Canadian level, the EI beneficiaries-to-unemployed ratio was fairly stable over time prior to the recession at between 40% and 45%. In Alberta, the ratio fell gradually during the economic boom years from more than 40% in 1996 to less than 25% in 2007 and the first nine months of 2008.  The ratio climbed to more than 40% in 2009 and was 36% in 2010.

Employment by Industry

In 2006, according to Statistics Canada’s census data, the services-producing sector in the North East Region accounted for about 65% of the total number employed.  By comparison, the service sector accounted for 72% of Alberta’s employment.

The Mining and Oil and Gas industry had the largest number of individuals employed.  This industry accounted for 12% of the region’s employment, compared with the industry’s 7% share at the provincial level.  Although the region has a sizeable natural gas sub-sector, the Mining and Oil and Gas industry is dominated by in-situ oil sands production.  The region’s next largest industries in 2006 were the Retail Trade sector and the Agriculture and Forestry sector, each accounting for about 11% of regional employment.

Between 2001 and 2006, the Mining and Oil and Gas industry had the largest employment gain (up 2,035) because of rising oil sands output.  In the region’s second largest industry, Agriculture and Forestry, employment decreased by nearly 1,000.


Although estimates from the Labour Force Survey are not very reliable6 for the small regions, it is clear from the survey’s results that the Mining and Oil and Gas and Professional, Scientific and Technical Services sectors have increased their employment levels between 2006 and 2010, while agricultural employment has declined.



1 The employment rate measures the proportion of the adult population that is employed. Employment Rate = (Employed / Population 15+)*100. High labour utilization traditionally accompanies strong economic activity.
2 The participation rate measures the proportion of the adult population that is in the labour force. Participation Rate = (Labour Force / Population 15+)*100. High labour participation is an effective indicator of the level of engagement among the working age population and traditionally accompanies strong economic activity.
3 The number of beneficiaries receiving regular benefits excludes claimants receiving training, job creation and self-employment benefits as well as other employment and support measures benefits.
4 Some of this increase was the result of Canada’s Economic Action Plan providing beneficiaries with five extra weeks of regular EI benefits in 2009 and 2010.
5 The number of beneficiaries receiving total income benefits includes both the beneficiaries receiving regular benefits and those receiving special benefits, such as for training, job creation, sickness, parental. 
6 Due to sample size problems and there not being any population control totals for non-standard geographies

Date Updated:
RDP-2487