The unemployment rate in the region that includes Grey and Bruce counties edged slightly higher in June.
The Four County Labour Market Planning Board says the jobless rate for the Stratford-Bruce Peninsula economic region rose to 9.6 per cent last month.
The regional economy shaved over 3,200 full-time positions in June. Net job losses totalled 2,100, as 1,100 part-time positions were added.
The construction (-1,200), agriculture (-800), educational services (-900) and transportation and warehousing sectors (-500) led the job losses in the Stratford-Bruce Peninsula region.
The national unemployment rate fell to 12.3 per cent as the economy added nearly one-million jobs. In Ontario, the jobless rate fell to 12.2 per cent.
The Four County Labour Market Planning Board notes it is now tracking an “underutilization rate” in the area as well. It looks at all those who were unemployed with those who were not in the labour force but wanted a job and didn't look for one, and those who remained employed but lost all or the majority of their usual work hours as a proportion of the potential labour force.
“While the rising unemployment rate continues to reflect layoffs due to COVID-19, the underutilization rate gives us a broader understanding of how workers in our region are being impacted by the pandemic. The Planning Board will continue to track this data point through 2020,” says Gemma Mendez-Smith, Four County Labour Market Planning Board executive director.
The planning board says the most current underutilization rate for Stratford-Bruce Peninsula is for April 2020, at 37.4 per cent. That is slightly higher than the rate of 36.6 per cent provincewide for April.