New Canada Jobs Report: Unemployment Rises in Ontario, Quebec, & B.C.

Last Updated On 6 October 2023, 7:53 PM EDT (Toronto Time)

According to a new Canada jobs report from StatCan today, the country’s unemployment rate for the month of September 2023 remains at 5.5%.

However, three major provinces with most of the Canadian population (more than 75%)—Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia (B.C.)—actually had an increase in the unemployment rate.

Unemployment Rate By Province

Province/Territory	September 2023 Unemployment Rate	August 2023 Unemployment Rate	August to September 2023
Newfoundland and Labrador	9.7%	8.9%	0.8%
British Columbia	5.4%	5.2%	0.2%
Quebec	4.4%	4.3%	0.1%
Ontario	6.0%	5.9%	0.1%
Alberta	5.7%	5.7%	0.0%
Nova Scotia	6.9%	7.0%	-0.1%
New Brunswick	7.2%	7.7%	-0.5%
Saskatchewan	4.9%	5.4%	-0.5%
Manitoba	5.0%	5.7%	-0.7%
Prince Edward Island	6.3%	7.6%	-1.3%

The unemployment rate has continuously increased in Ontario, the largest population centre of Canada, since April 2023, except for a minimal drop in July 2023.

Unemployment Increases for South Asians and Black Canadians

The unemployment rate has risen for core-aged (between the ages of 25 and 54) South Asians and Black Canadians in the past year.

Compared to September 2022, the unemployment rate for South Asian Canadians in the core age group increased to 6.4% in September 2023.

Core-aged South Asian women’s unemployment rate increased by 2.1 percentage points to 8.2% during the same time, accounting for the majority of the increase.

Black Canadians aged 25 to 54 had an unemployment rate of 7.9% in September 2023, which was 1.1% points higher than it was a year earlier.

The majority of the cause of this was an increase in black women’s unemployment, which rose by 2.5 percentage points to 9.4% in the 12 months prior to September.

Overall Employment Increases in September 2023

After increasing by 40,000 (+0.2%) in August, employment increased further by 64,000 (+0.3%) in September 2023.

The percentage of people aged 15 and older who are employed, or the employment rate, increased by 0.1 percentage points to 62.0%, counteracting a dip in the previous month.

Geography	Employment September	Employment August	Month-on-Month Change	Month-on-Month % Change
Canada	20,270,200	20,206,300	63,900	0.3%
Ontario	7,960,200	7,940,300	19,900	0.3%
Quebec	4,543,200	4,504,500	38,700	0.9%
British Columbia	2,814,300	2,788,600	25,700	0.9%
Alberta	2,449,300	2,487,100	-37,800	-1.5%
Manitoba	700,100	691,300	8,800	1.3%
Saskatchewan	592,600	586,600	6,000	1.0%
Nova Scotia	494,800	491,600	3,200	0.7%
New Brunswick	386,400	389,100	-2,700	-0.7%
Newfoundland and Labrador	236,700	237,300	-600	-0.3%
Prince Edward Island	92,600	89,900	2,700	3.0%

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