Employment Trends

The unemployment rate in Canada was 6.6% as of March 2026, down 0.1% from the previous month. The unemployment rate stood 6.9% below the peak from June 2020 and is below the long-run average.

There were 21,500 fewer full-time jobs in March 2026 compared to a month earlier. Combined with a loss of 10,000 part-time positions, this led to a decrease of 31,500 total jobs in March.

Full-time employment was down 25,600 jobs from the peak in January 2026.

* All figures are seasonally adjusted, 3-month moving averages. Seasonal adjustment removes normal seasonal fluctuations.