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The loss of more than 200 jobs at Federated Co-operatives’ food distribution warehouse in Calgary caps a gloomy week for local workers, one that’s seen almost 1,000 positions evaporate within a few days.

It’s a sobering reminder that the employment situation remains fragile in the city and across the province heading into the final month of 2019.

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In the past week alone, several large-scale layoffs were announced, some tied to provincial budget cuts — such as at the University of Calgary and Calgary Board of Education — while other job losses unfolded in the private sector.

“What we have seen this week is a whole bunch of things coming together at once. Interestingly, none of this is in the energy sector but it is in other parts of the economy that are important,” Mayor Naheed Nenshi said Friday.

“You know in a big economy like ours, these are not massive macroeconomic numbers, but I am worried that it’s a harbinger of a bigger trend.”