2019-10-11 – Canada unemployment dropped to 5.5 percent as the number of people with Canada jobs rose by 54,000 during September.
The country added 111,000 jobs in the third quarter and 456,000 in the last 12 months, according to the Statistics Canada Labour Market Survey.
The job growth was concentrated in Ontario, which added 41,100 jobs over the course of the month.
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Demographically, growth was concentrated in the core age-group of 25 to 54-year-olds.
Men in the age-group added 36,000 jobs in September, while women added 33,000.
Core working-age men recorded an unemployment rate of 4.4 percent at the end of September, the lowest since 1979. Core working-age women saw unemployment drop 0.3 percentage points to 4.2 percent.
Both have seen significant gains in the last year, of 134,000 and 78,999 jobs respectively.
What Are The Labour Force Survey Highlights?
| Unemployment rate (%) | 5.5 |
| Employment rate (%) | 62.1 |
| Labour force participation rate (%) | 65.7 |
| Number unemployed | 1,113,200 |
| Number working | 19,165,200 |
| Youth (15-24) unemployment rate (%) | 11.9 |
| Men (over 25) unemployment rate (%) | 4.5 |
| Women (over 25) unemployment rate (%) | 4.3 |
Source: Statistics Canada
Provincial Canada Jobs Picture
Ontario’s employment gains came mainly in full-time work, with the province’s unemployment rate dropping to 0.3 percentage points. Over the last year, Ontario employment has increased by 253,000, or 3.5 percent.
Quebec, meanwhile, added 13,600 jobs with unemployment of 4.8 percent. The French-speaking province has the joint-lowest unemployment of all the provinces, alongside British Columbia.
Nova Scotia saw employment rise by 3,200 jobs in September, with its unemployment rate falling by 0.7 percentage points to 7.2 percent. Nova Scotia’s employment is up by 10,000 in the last year or 2.2 percent.
Which Canadian Province Has the Lowest Unemployment?
| Jobs change September | Unemployment rate (%) | |
| 1=) Quebec | 13,600 | 4.8 |
| 1=) British Columbia | -8,400 | 4.8 |
| 3) Manitoba | -400 | 5.0 |
| 4=) Saskatchewan | 600 | 5.3 |
| 4=) Ontario | 41,100 | 5.3 |
| 6) Alberta | 4,900 | 6.6 |
| 7) Nova Scotia | 3,200 | 7.2 |
| 8) New Brunswick | -1,500 | 8.3 |
| 9) Prince Edward Island | 500 | 8.8 |
| 10) Newfoundland & Labrador | 100 | 11.5 |
| CANADA | 53,700 | 5.5 |
Source: Statistics Canada
Other provinces to see unemployment drop in September were Newfoundland & Labrador (down 1.6 percentage points to 11.5 percent), Alberta (down 0.6 percentage points to 6.6 percent) and Manitoba (down 0.6 percentage points to 5.0 percent).
Canada Jobs By Industry
Looking at Canada jobs by industry, health care and social assistance was the biggest gainer, adding 30,000 jobs in September. Employment has grown by 108,000 in the sector in the last year ( a 4.5 percent rise).
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Accommodation and food services also saw gains, adding 23,000 jobs in September. Employment is little changed in the sector over the last year.
The number of self-employed workers grew by 42,000 in September, assisting an increase of 106,000 jobs in the last year.
Public sector jobs grew by 33,000 in September, for growth of 67,000 in the last 12 months.
In the private sector, September jobs were little changed, by the number of employees remains up 283,000in the last year.
