As I have noted on this website before, making sense of the numbers or what they really mean is a task I will leave to others, being a mere mortal I have found the challenge more than I can surmount.
To help with analysis of the above numbers, the employed number indicates the number of people actually working in the labour force. This does not have to be full time equivalent jobs, and I assume would include the person on call and getting 4 hours a week.
The unemployed % number is the number of people in the labour pool who are actually seeking employment and would not include people who have run out of EI benefits and have gone on to social assistance to keep body and soul together.
Two comparison numbers that demonstrates my difficulty deciding what these numbers mean, if anything, are January 2012 when 44,300 people were employed and we had an unemployment rate of 6.2%. Compare that number with January 2013 when there are 52,600 people employed, which is 8300 more people supposedly employed yet we have the same 6.2% classed as unemployed.
If any readers can shed some light on these numbers I would love to hear from you.
I think it has to do with how many people are working away in Alberta.
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