As 2024 draws to a close, Toronto’s labour market finds itself at a crossroad. From shifting employment trends to industry-specific challenges and broader geopolitical pressures, the city’s labour market faces uncertainty. Toronto’s employment rate stood at 61.8% in November 2024,
November JobsTO Labour Lowdown
Toronto’s labour market remained in a holding pattern in October with conditions showing little change from earlier this fall. The unemployment rate ticked up marginally to 7.5% but still well below the rates seen during the summer. Over the past
JobsTO Labour Lowdown October
Toronto’s Labour Market Brightens on Good Economic News After months of a sluggish job market in Toronto and across the rest of the country, September’s labour market exceeded economists’ expectations, with the economy adding more than twice as many jobs
September JobsTO Labour Lowdown
Jobs Decline Led by Retail and Construction Toronto’s unemployment rate continued to trend higher in August reaching 8.8 per cent. Our unemployment rate compares unfavourably to the national average of 6.6 percent. Indeed, across Canada, only Windsor and Edmonton had
August JobsTO Labour Lowdown
Labour Market Holds Steady in July. Toronto’s labour market conditions showed a slight improvement since June 2024 with the unemployment rate dipping from 8.1% in June to 7.5% in July. The employment rate was up marginally to 60%. Largest employment
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.
February Labour Lowdown
Toronto’s unemployment rate jumped to 8.2% last month, an increase of 0.7% from January 2024. The employment rate dipped by 0.4% to 59.8% while labour force participation rates stood steady at 65.2%. Statistic Canada notes that the increase in unemployment
Toronto’s Labour Market One of Few Bright Spots
Across Canada, labour market conditions weakened in November with unemployment rates increasing and layoffs on the rise compared with a year ago. The softer job market conditions come as high interest rates weigh on economic growth and a ballooning population adds to the number of people looking for work. Toronto bucked the national trend with our unemployment rate actually declining from 6.5% to 6.3%.