Employment was little changed in June (+18,000; +0.1%) and the employment rate rose 0.1 percentage points to 60.8%. The unemployment rate declined 0.1 percentage points to 6.5%, reported Statistics Canada on Friday.
Employment increased in accommodation and food services (+15,000; +1.2%) while it decreased in manufacturing (-17,000; -0.9%), agriculture (-7,600; -3.3%), and utilities (-7,300; -4.3%), said the federal agency.
For the accommodation and food services it was the third consecutive monthly increase. Gains in June were concentrated in Quebec (+11,000; +4.3%) and Ontario (+9,800; +2.3%). On a year-over-year basis, employment in accommodation and food services was up by 39,000 (+3.4%).
Statistics Canada said employment was up among youth (15 to 24 years old) (+33,000; +1.2%) and among core-aged people (25 to 54 years old) (+33,000; 0.2%), while it fell among those aged 55 and older (-47,000; -1.1%). In June, the youth unemployment rate fell 0.7 percentage points to 12.7%. The unemployment rate held steady for women (5.5%) and men (5.7%) in the core working age. For people aged 55 and older, the unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 5.2%.
It said employment rose by 88,000 (+0.4%) in May. On a year-over-year basis, employment was up by 99,000 (+0.5%) in June, driven by a net increase in full-time employment (+131,000; +0.8%).
The employment rate—the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who are employed—rose 0.1 percentage points to 60.8% in June. The employment rate in June matched the rate observed at the start of the year (60.8% in January) and was little changed on a year-over-year basis.
The number of public sector employees declined by 31,000 (-0.7%) in June. At the same time, employment edged up among private sector employees (+32,000; +0.2%), following an increase of 56,000 (+0.4%) in May. Overall employment growth in the 12 months to June (+99,000; +0.5%) was concentrated among private sector employees (+94,000; +0.7%). Over the same period, there was little change in the number of public sector employees and self-employed workers, explained Statistics Canada.
The unemployment rate fell 0.1 percentage points to 6.5% in June—matching the rate last observed in January. The decline in June follows a 0.3 percentage point decline in May. On a year-over-year basis, the unemployment rate was down 0.4 percentage points in June.
The job finding rate—the proportion of unemployed people who found a job between May and June—was 24.3%. This was higher than the proportion observed for the same period 12 months earlier (21.3%). The layoff rate remained stable at 0.6% in June, unchanged compared with a year earlier and compared with the average observed from 2017 to 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (not seasonally adjusted).
The number of people in the labour force was little changed and the participation rate—the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who were employed or looking for work—held steady at 65.0%.
On the other hand, employment in manufacturing decreased by 17,000 (-0.9%) in June, offsetting the increase in May (+15,000; +0.8%). Employment in manufacturing has recorded a net decline of 61,000 (-3.2%) from the recent peak in January 2025, coinciding with a period of tariff-related uncertainty for the sector.
Unemployment rate by province and territory, June 2026
“The Canadian labour market continued to add jobs in June, putting the weakness seen over the first four months of the year further into the rearview mirror. The 18K reading was slightly above expectations (consensus 10K) and, with the participation rate holding steady and population growth slower than in recent years, it was enough to see the unemployment rate edge down to 6.5%. However, given how weak the first part of the year was for the labour market, employment is still broadly flat so far this year and the jobless rate has simply returned to the recent low recorded in January,” said Andrew Grantham, Senior Economist, CIBC Capital Markets.
“By sector, job growth was led by wholesale & retail, food & accommodation and info & recreation, with the latter two possibly flattered by hiring related to the FIFA World Cup. The summer job market for students continues to look better than it was last year, and the unemployment rate for young people (15-24) fell further in June.”
Maria Solovieva, Economist, TD, said; “This report landed broadly in line with market expectations. Following May’s exceptionally strong gain, hiring moderated in June, and the unemployment rate returned to where it began the year. Pulling back the lens, Canada’s labour market has made modest, but positive progress over the past year.
“Manufacturing, where job losses continue to mount, remains a poster child of the uncertainty hanging over the Canadian economy. It is a reminder that the economy continues to operate below capacity, with downside risks concentrated in trade-exposed sectors. This should continue to provide a disinflationary offset. With this backdrop we expect the Bank of Canada to remain on the sidelines and keep its policy rate unchanged at 2.25% at next week’s meeting.”
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