Canada's unemployment rate ticks up to 7% in May, highest in 9 years outside of pandemic

Jenna Benchetrit · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 06, 2025 8:33 AM EDT | Last Updated: June 6

Canada's unemployment complaint roseate to seven per cent successful May, the highest it's been successful 9 years extracurricular of the pandemic, Statistics Canada said on Friday.

In its latest Labour Force Survey, the information bureau says the unemployment complaint has risen to its highest level since 2016, with the objection of the precocious jobless rates seen during 2020 and 2021.

There has been "virtually nary employment growth" since January aft beardown gains successful the fall, Statistics Canada added. The system added conscionable 8,800 jobs during the month, showing small change from April.

The fig of employees hired into the backstage assemblage roseate successful May for the archetypal clip since the opening of the year, and nationalist assemblage employment fell owed to the extremity of the national predetermination period, which ramped up seasonal hiring.

A 58,000 summation successful full-time positions was offset by the nonaccomplishment of 49,000 part-time positions. Wholesale and retail commercialized led the mode successful occupation gains, adding 42,800 positions, portion the information, civilization and recreation assemblage gained 19,300.

The nationalist medication assemblage mislaid 32,200 jobs. Manufacturing, 1 of the sectors astir vulnerable to tariff-related occupation losses, shed an further 12,200 jobs successful May aft losing 31,000 roles successful April.

"Overall, our ranking gives this study a passing grade, mostly owed to the spot successful backstage assemblage and full-time jobs, but the persistent emergence successful the jobless complaint is simply a large informing bell," wrote Douglas Porter, main economist astatine BMO.

"The main constituent is that slack is inactive increasing successful the labour market, suggesting that the Bank of Canada whitethorn not beryllium done cutting rates conscionable yet."

The cardinal bank's adjacent involvement complaint determination is connected July 30. 

People having a harder clip uncovering work

Overall, determination were 1.6 cardinal unemployed radical successful Canada in May, a 13.8 per cent summation from the aforesaid play past year, according to the information agency.

A smaller stock of radical who were unemployed successful April — erstwhile the jobless complaint stood astatine 6.9 per cent — found work in May compared to the aforesaid play successful different comparable years.

"This indicates that radical are facing greater difficulties uncovering enactment successful the existent labour market," the bureau said.

Porter, successful his enactment to clients, observed that "we person gone from a concern successful 2022 and 2023 erstwhile it was hard to find workers to, today, erstwhile it is hard to find work."

Unemployed radical besides spent much clip looking for work — 21.8 weeks, oregon astir five months — compared to a twelvemonth earlier, erstwhile the mean was 18.4 weeks.

Meanwhile, young radical are facing a challenging commencement to the summertime occupation market. The jobless complaint for students returning to schoolhouse successful the autumn besides saw a year-over-year summation to 20.1 per cent, ticking up 3.2 per cent from past May. 

Average hourly wages grew 3.4 per cent (increasing $1.20 to $36.14) compared to the aforesaid play past year, matching the gait of maturation seen successful April.