The local unemployment rate went up last month, in the opposite direction of national trends.
The rate for the Belleville Census Metropolitan Area went up over one percent from 2.3 per cent in February to 3.5 per cent in March.
The Belleville CMA consists of Belleville, Quinte West, Tyendinaga/Deseronto, and Stirling-Rawdon.
The local rate is 6.9 percentage points lower than it was in March of 2021.
Statistics Canada says the national unemployment rate fell to 5.3 per cent compared with 5.5 per cent in February.
Total employment rose by 73,000 in March, driven by an increase of 93,000 in full-time work.
