The number of people receiving employment insurance benefits remained stable in April in most parts of Canada except in Alberta, where the figure for jobless benefits skyrocketed 10.7% over the previous month.
Statistics Canada figures released Thursday show 43,900 people received jobless benefits in April, marking the biggest increase in the country for the fourth consecutive month. The number increased nearly 50% over October, when the slump in oil prices that continues today was just starting.
The Alberta figures for April compared to March include:
In Edmonton, EI beneficiaries rose for the sixth consecutive month (up 10.4%).
In Calgary, the number rose 9.3%.
In the rest of Alberta, the increase was 12.2%.
Few other provinces posted notable increases.
In British Columbia, the EI number was up 2.4% from March's level. In Saskatchewan, it was 1.1% higher.
There was little change in Ontario and Quebec, while the rest of the provinces had fewer people on EI rolls in April than they did in March.
Across the country, there were 521,300 EI recipients in April, up 0.5% from March's level.
There was a bright spot in the numbers, however, in that the number of jobless claims declined 1.9% in April compared to March.
