EASTERN ONTARIO – For the fourth month in a row, the number of people in Eastern Ontario on the unemployment line dropped.
Statistics Canada says the regional rate for the area from Brockville to Ottawa and east to Quebec dropped to 6.2 in December from 6.6 in November.
It’s the fourth month the jobless numbers have dropped since hitting a peak of 9.8 per cent in August 2020.
Cornwall’s jobless rate was 7.6 per cent last month, up from 6.6 per cent in November. Due to the small sample size in Cornwall this figure can fluctuate wildly.
Regional unemployment is below Canada’s average of 8.6 per cent.
The national economy lost 63,000 jobs in December as the unemployment rate moved 0.1 per cent higher than November.