The city's unemployment rate continued to creep higher in December.
It stood stood at 6.7 per cent for the month, according to Statistics Canada labour market survey numbers released Friday, up from 6.4 per cent the month before.
Take into account the statistical accuracy of the estimate and it could be as high as 7.8 per cent, College of New Caledonia economics instructor Al Idiens noted.
"It looks like we've entered the serious range," he said.
The string of sawmill closures and curtailments appear to be behind the rising rate, he speculated. All of Canfor's B.C. sawmills were shut down for two weeks over the holiday season.
As of last month, 47,200 people were working while 3,400 were looking for work for a participation rate of 69.1 per cent among those in the city of working age.
"We still have a high rate of adults out there that are either working or seeking work," Idiens said in comparing the rate to those seen in other communities of similar size across Canada.
In November, 48,000 were working and 3,300 were looking for employment, putting the participation rate at 70.1 per cent.
For December 2018, the unemployment rate was 5.8 per cent, 45,400 people were working and 2,800 were looking for work. The participation rate was 66.2 per cent.
The unemployment's rate might improve slightly in January with the sawmills opening up again but the closures of Lowe's and Northern Hardware, adding up to about 140 jobs, could also come into play, Idiens said.
The numbers are based on a three-month rolling average and do not separate full-time from part-time work.
