Red Deer region’s unemployment rate rises in September

Elsewhere, Edmonton’s unemployment rate was 8.9 per cent last month while Lethbridge-Medicine Hat came in at 8.8 per cent.

Calgary’s unemployment rate was 8.0 per cent in September, with Wood Buffalo-Cold Lake having a jobless rate of 7.2 per cent.

The Banff-Jasper-Rocky Mountain House and Athabasca-Grande Prairie Peace River region saw an unemployment rate of 6.9 per cent last month, while Camrose-Drumheller’s jobless rate was the lowest at 5.6 per cent in September.

The provincial unemployment rate came in at 7.8 per cent in September, down 0.6 per cent from August but up 0.2 per cent from the same month last year.

The national jobless rate, meantime, was 7.1 per cent in September, unchanged from August.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

There were 2,605,600 people employed in Alberta, an increase of 42,500 (+1.7 per cent) from the previous month, and an increase of 95,500 (+3.8 per cent) compared to September 2024. This increase followed two months of consecutive declines.
In September 2025, Alberta’s unemployment rate was 7.8 per cent, down 0.6 percentage points from the previous month.
Employment increased in the private sector (+24,800), in the public sector (+7,800), and among the self-employed (+9,800).
Full-time employment increased by 18,800 and part-time employment grew by 23,500 from the previous month.
The largest monthly employment gains were in construction (+8,400); manufacturing (+7,900); and educational services (+7,400).
The largest monthly employment decreases were in transportation and warehousing (-8,100); information, culture and recreation (-7,100); and accommodation and food services (-3,400).

KEY LFS INDICATORS:

Table 1: Alberta Labour Force Characteristics, September 2025

INDIGENOUS STATISTICS:

In September 2025, the unemployment rate for Indigenous peoples living off reserve in Alberta was 11.0%. This is up 0.5 percentage points from August and up 0.8 percentage points from the same month last year.
Employment among Indigenous men declined by 2,000 jobs, while Indigenous women experienced an increase of 300 jobs between August and September 2025.
Between August and September 2025, employment among Indigenous youth (ages 15 to 24) fell by 1,900 jobs, and among core-aged Indigenous workers (25 to 54) by 1,600 jobs. In contrast, employment for older Indigenous workers (55 and over) increased by 1,700 jobs.

NOTE: Historical LFS data was revised in January 2025. This might result in slight changes in historical LFS results compared to previous reports.

The documents can be accessed publicly at the following links:

Alberta Labour Force Highlights – September 2025: https://open.alberta.ca/publications/1205-0709
Alberta Indigenous Labour Force Highlights – September 2025: https://open.alberta.ca/publications/3094714-highlights

by Sheldon Spackman

Red Deer region’s unemployment rate rises in September

What's Trending