Labour force shrinks in December

OTTAWA —  Employment fell by 46,000 in December, the result of declines in full-time work. The unemployment rate rose 0.3 percentage points to 7.2% as more people searched for work. Dampened by the decline in December, employment gains in 2013 amounted to 102,000 or 0.6%. Employment growth averaged 8,500 per month in 2013, compared with 25,900 in 2012. Provincially, employment in December declined in Ontario and Alberta, while it increased in British Columbia and Newfoundland & Labrador.