Statistics Canada reports 18,000-job decline, 6.9% April unemployment

Statistics Canada said Canada lost 18,000 jobs in April 2026, leaving employment little changed overall while the unemployment rate rose to 6.9%. More people searched for work, and the number of unemployed people increased by 51,000.

April 2026 labour figures

The employment rate fell 0.1 percentage points to 60.5%, matching a recent low seen in August 2025. The participation rate rose 0.1 percentage points to 65.0%, while the labour force participation rate for core-aged people rose 0.3 percentage points to 88.5%.

Full-time employment fell by 47,000, or 0.3%, in April, while part-time employment edged up by 29,000, or 0.8%. The monthly layoff rate was 0.6%, and 22.5% of unemployed people had been searching continuously for 27 weeks or more.

Quebec and Ontario jobs

Quebec recorded the largest provincial decline, with employment down 43,000, or 0.9%. Newfoundland and Labrador lost 5,200 jobs, Saskatchewan lost 4,000, and New Brunswick lost 2,700. Ontario added 42,000 jobs, or 0.5%, offsetting part of the national decline.

Youth aged 15 to 24 saw the unemployment rate rise 0.5 percentage points to 14.3%, while core-aged men aged 25 to 54 saw it increase 0.3 percentage points to 6.1%. Average hourly wages among employees were up 4.5% from a year earlier to $37.77, an increase of $1.64.

February to April 2026

The April reading followed a February decline of 84,000 jobs and brought the January-to-April net loss to 112,000, or 0.5%. The latest numbers show a labour market where hiring gains in Ontario did not fully offset losses in Quebec and three other provinces, leaving younger workers with the sharpest unemployment rate increase.