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- calendar_today November 6, 2026
Unemployment Rate Rose to 6.7% in October
The Canadian unemployment rate climbed to 6.7 per cent in October, according to Statistics Canada’s latest Labour Force Survey. This marks an increase from 6.5 per cent in September, as more people across the country sought employment.
Job Losses Total 4,700 in October
Statistics Canada reported a net loss of 4,700 jobs in October. This continues a challenging trend for the Canadian labour market, which saw a substantial cumulative loss of 110,000 jobs over September and August. A Reuters survey of economists had initially expected a positive rebound, forecasting a gain of 13,600 jobs for October. However, those expectations were not met.
Private and Public Sector Employment Trends
Private sector employment fell by 53,000 positions in October. This represents the first decline in private sector jobs since February. Despite this setback in the latest month, Statistics Canada noted that private sector employment remains higher than it was a year ago. On the other hand, public sector employment gained 50,000 jobs in October, although public sector numbers have decreased on a year-over-year basis.
Youth Unemployment Surges
The job market for young workers has become significantly more difficult. Unemployment among Canadians aged 15 to 24 surged to 13.7 per cent in October, an increase of 0.7 percentage points from September. The report indicated that youth seeking work increased and that job losses among young people contributed to this elevated rate. Students faced a higher unemployment rate compared with youth not attending school. Although young workers have struggled in recent years, their jobless rate had shown little movement during the previous summer months.
Sectoral Employment Highlights
Industry-specific data revealed that wholesale and retail trade led job losses in October, with 29,000 positions eliminated. Additional declines were seen in transportation and warehousing, as well as the food and accommodation sectors. These losses were partly counterbalanced by job gains in construction and education.
Layoff Rates and Wage Growth
Statistics Canada’s report noted that the layoff rate—for people employed in September who were laid off by October—remained “virtually unchanged” at 0.7 per cent compared to a year earlier. Average hourly wages increased by 2.2 per cent year-over-year in October, a slight decline from the 2.3 per cent annual wage growth reported the previous month.
Policy Context: Interest Rate Hike
The release of these labour market indicators follows the Bank of Canada's recent decision to raise its key policy rate by a quarter point to 2.5 per cent, marking the first interest rate hike in over three years. Central bank officials pointed to economic resilience and concerns about rising inflation as motivations for this policy move.
Source: halifax.citynews.ca.
