In March 2025, Toronto’s labour market demonstrated signs of continued economic stress, reflecting broader economic conditions influenced by ongoing international trade tensions and recently imposed tariffs.
Toronto’s unemployment rate rose to 9.5% in March 2025, up from 9.1% in February and 8.8% in January. This upward trajectory, evident since January, marks a sustained challenge in employment conditions, influenced significantly by tariffs affecting manufacturing sectors and reduced consumer spending in retail and hospitality.
Despite rising unemployment, the employment rate exhibited a slight increase to 61.3% in March, compared to 61.2% in February, although slightly lower than January’s 61.6%. This suggests modest employment growth has been insufficient to offset the inflow of job seekers entering the labour market.
The participation rate rose marginally to 67.7%, from 67.4% in February, indicating an increased labour market engagement despite the challenging economic conditions. This rise may reflect economic pressures prompting more residents to actively seek employment, coupled with incremental economic activity in specific service sectors.
Comparatively, Toronto’s unemployment rate remains notably higher than both Ontario’s (7.5%) and the national rate for Canada (6.7%) in March 2025. While Ontario’s employment decreased by 0.3%, reflecting similar economic pressures seen in Toronto, Canada’s overall employment fell slightly by 0.2%. These statistics highlight Toronto’s unique challenges amidst provincial and national labour market conditions.
Toronto Wages
Between April 2024 and March 2025, Toronto experienced fluctuating wage trends with average hourly wages rising from $36.57 in April 2024 to a peak of $40.39 in October 2024 before easing back to $38.31 in March 2025. This fluctuation reflects ongoing economic uncertainties impacting wage stability within the city. Compared to the national average hourly wage of $36.05 reported by Statistics Canada in March 2025, Toronto’s average hourly wage remains notably higher, indicating the city’s higher living costs and competitive labour market despite recent economic pressures.
Year Over Year – Employment by Industry
In March 2025, employment across Toronto industries showed mixed trends, reflecting varying economic impacts within the region. Overall, employment in Toronto grew by 3.3% year-over-year, with the total number of employed individuals reaching approximately 3,720,600, up from about 3,601,200 in March 2024.
The Finance and Insurance sector led growth with a significant increase of 10.2%, employing 460,200 individuals compared to 417,500 a year earlier. Similarly, Business, Building and Other Support Services demonstrated robust employment growth of 10.4%, increasing to 137,600 from 124,600.
Other notable increases occurred in the Hospitality and Tourism sector, which expanded by 7.3%, reaching 168,100 employees, highlighting continued recovery post-pandemic. Manufacturing also experienced a notable rise, growing by 7.1% to 361,500 employees. Education and Public Administration employment rose by 6.8% year-over-year, suggesting sustained public sector hiring, and the Creative Industries sector employment increased by 5.3%, reflecting ongoing demand for creative talent in the region.
Conversely, some sectors experienced employment contractions. The Transportation and Warehousing sector showed the steepest decline, falling 8.1% to 203,600 from 221,500 the previous year. Construction and Utilities also faced a downturn, decreasing by 4.5% to 222,100, indicating potential impacts from increased tariffs and slowing housing development activities.
Employment in sectors such as Health Care (up 3.1%), Other Services (up 2.4%), Wholesale and Retail Trade (up marginally by 0.3%), and Scientific and Technical Services (up 1.0%) displayed modest year-over-year growth, indicating steady, yet slower employment gains compared to more rapidly growing sectors.
Looking ahead to the next quarter, April to June 2025, Toronto’s employment landscape may reflect ongoing pressures from increased tariffs and the slowing pace of construction activity. Given the recent employment contraction in the Construction and Utilities sector—down 4.5% year-over-year in March—and the sustained weakness in Transportation and Warehousing, it is plausible that these industries could experience further moderation or continued declines. We also remain concerned about Toronto’s manufacturing sector given targeted tariffs from the United States.
Higher tariffs on construction materials and economic uncertainty could dampen demand for new residential and commercial developments, further limiting employment opportunities in construction and related sectors. Conversely, industries less exposed to tariff-related cost increases, such as Finance and Insurance and Hospitality and Tourism, may maintain their growth momentum, bolstered by steady consumer demand and stable financial market conditions. Overall, employment in Toronto might exhibit modest, uneven growth, with downward pressures in tariff-sensitive sectors partly offset by continued strength in service-oriented industries.
JobsTO
Analyzing job posting trends in Toronto through JobsTo data reveals significant fluctuations both year-over-year and month-over-month, reflecting evolving labour market conditions.
Comparing March 2025 to March 2024, the number of companies hiring decreased notably from 14,542 to 7,955—a decline of approximately 45.3%. Active job postings also saw a substantial drop from 51,421 in March 2024 to 24,398 in March 2025, a decrease of roughly 52.6%. This significant year-over-year reduction highlights the impact of economic uncertainty and sector-specific slowdowns, particularly in industries sensitive to tariffs and broader economic pressures.
Examining month-over-month trends within 2024-2025 provides further insights. Following a seasonal peak in hiring activity during June and July 2024, with active job posts reaching upwards of 63,000, a pronounced downward trend became apparent through the subsequent months. By December 2024, active job postings had declined to 19,518, and the number of hiring companies decreased to 7,136, indicative of an increasingly cautious hiring environment. Early 2025 saw continued reductions in job market activity, bottoming out in February with just 5,030 companies hiring and 13,079 active job postings. March 2025, however, displayed a modest recovery in postings (up to 24,398) and in companies hiring (increasing to 7,955), suggesting possible stabilization or cautious optimism moving into the second quarter of 2025.
These trends underline the volatility and responsiveness of Toronto’s job market to broader economic factors and sector-specific challenges.
Job Postings by Industry
The sharpest reduction occurred in the Transportation sector, experiencing a 70.3% drop in job postings, declining from 970 in 2024 to only 288 in 2025. Similarly, the Science and Technical sector witnessed a pronounced decrease of 61.9%, with job postings falling from 5,565 to 2,123, highlighting substantial contraction possibly linked to decreased research funding or reduced corporate investment.
Construction and Utilities also faced significant challenges, with job postings down by 58.4% from 1,220 to 507, largely attributed to rising tariffs on construction materials and the associated slowdown in building activities. The Education and Public Administration sector saw a substantial drop of 58.5%, decreasing from 2,625 postings to 1,089, potentially reflecting budget constraints or hiring freezes in public institutions.
Business Services postings declined notably by 57.9%, from 4,492 to 1,890, while Manufacturing sector postings dropped by 50.7%, decreasing from 1,105 to 545, indicative of broader industrial slowdown.
Other sectors experiencing significant downturns include Creative Industries, down by 52.3% to 1,236 postings, and Retail and Wholesale Trade, which decreased by 47.3%, reflecting reduced consumer spending and economic uncertainty. Hospitality and Tourism also experienced notable declines, down by 46.4%, despite prior recovery indicators.
Health Care and Finance sectors, while still facing declines of 43.3% and 47.4% respectively, showed relatively smaller reductions compared to other sectors, suggesting these areas maintained stronger demand for skilled workers amid the broader downturn.
In Other News
In other news, Toronto faced a significant development in retail history with the recent bankruptcy of the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC). This event has notably impacted several iconic Toronto locations, including the flagship store at Yonge and Queen, raising concerns about the future of these historic retail landmarks. The closures highlight ongoing shifts in consumer habits and broader economic challenges facing the retail sector.
In response to economic uncertainties and to bolster local businesses, the City of Toronto has launched a prominent campaign encouraging residents to “buy local and buy Canadian.” The initiative aims to support local entrepreneurs and businesses by keeping spending within the community, thereby strengthening Toronto’s economic resilience amid ongoing market disruptions.
Complementing this local effort, Ontario’s Ford government has unveiled a policy emphasizing the procurement of Canadian goods and services for government contracts. This “Buy Canadian” approach is intended to stimulate local industries and secure employment within Ontario, providing a strategic economic boost in sectors ranging from construction and manufacturing to technology and professional services.
