In January 2025, Toronto’s labour market surprised economists by exhibiting positive momentum, and aligning with provincial and national employment trends. Analysts had been expecting the economy would have lost significant jobs based on the spectre of proposed U.S. tariffs and
July Labour Lowdown

Toronto’s labour market conditions have now cooled considerably from where they were a year ago. Although the unemployment rate ticked slightly lower to 8.2%, the decline can be attributed fewer individuals participating in the labour force which declined by 0.8% from May. Particularly striking are the nearly 100,000 jobs lost since June of last year. There are, however, some positive signals in anticipation of further interest rate cuts.
June Labour Lowdown

Employment Conditions Improve in May
After months of lagging behind other regions of Canada in job creation, Toronto led the country by adding over 30,000 jobs in May. Unemployment ticked lower to 8.3% while the employment rate increased from 60.4% from 59.8%. Unfortunately, Toronto’s unemployment rate of 8.3% remains well above the national average of 6.2%.
March Labour Lowdown

Across Canada, labour market conditions largely held with the employment numbers holding steady along with unemployment rates. Unfortunately, the Toronto labour market did not fare as well as the rest of Canada. The unemployment rate in Toronto increased 1.7 percentage points to reach 7.5% in March.