Since March 2001 more than 14,700 jobs have been lost from the northeastern Ontario labour force, a decrease of almost six per cent, according to Human Resources Development Canada.
March was the eighth consecutive month of job losses in the area. A total of about 3,400 of those jobs were full-time positions.
A spokesperson for HRDC in North Bay said most of the jobs were lost in the service sector. Some increases were seen in sectors such as educational services, information, culture and recreation.
There was a slight decrease in employment insurance claims during the month of March, compared to February. In March, 2,749 claims were made, while in February there were 2,890 claims.
Throughout northeastern Ontario the employment picture was bleak.
The region’s unemployment rate increased one point in March, to 10.5 per cent, from 9.5 per cent in the previous month.
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