For the Lethbridge-Medicine Hat region, the rate climbed slightly from an even 4% in January to 4.3% last month. However, that number is more than half a point lower than February of 2012, which posted a rate of 4.9%.

Provincially, the jobless rate was unchanged at 4.5%, which is also down from the 4.9% posted in February of last year. The Alberta rate is the second lowest in the country. Saskatchewan has the lowest jobless rate at 3.8% and Newfoundland is the highest at 11.7%.

Nationally, the Canadian economy surprised even the most optimistic by churning out 50,700 new jobs in February. Most of them are full-time, private sector positions and many were created in Ontario. The addition of the new jobs held the country's unemployment rate at 7%, which remains at a four year low.