Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: April Labour Force Survey

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Statistics Canada’s newest Labour Force Survey reports that Canadian employment changed very little between March and April 2025, the unemployment rate rising from 6.7 to 6.9 per cent despite a slight gain in the number of people employed.

While the number of full-time employees in Canada rose by 7,400 between March and April 2025, the number of unemployed Canadians – people who reported looking for work or being temporarily laid off – increased by 39,000, a monthly rise of 2.6 per cent over March and a year-over-year rise of 189,000 (13.9 per cent).

April’s numbers mark the third month in a row capturing a challenging environment for unemployed Canadians, following last month’s significant loss of 33,000 full-time jobs between February and March 2025 and similarly stagnant full-time employment gains of only 1,100 between January and February 2025.

There remains, however, a silver lining overall – Statistics Canada reported 268,000 more people working in April 2025 compared with April 2024 – a year-over-year gain of approximately 1.3 per cent.

For more context on the Canada job market's evolution over the past three months, check out our previous updates:

Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: March Labour Force Survey

Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: February Labour Force Survey

Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: January Labour Force Survey

You can also find the latest Canada job market data, updated monthly, on our Labour Market Overview page.

Manufacturing, wholesale and retail sectors post biggest losses in April 2025

On a sector-specific basis, the Canada job market’s largest employment losses in April came from the manufacturing sector, which lost 31,000 full-time jobs between March and April – a monthly decline of 1.6 per cent.

Statistics Canada noted this decline was the manufacturing sector’s most significant at the national level since November 2024, though in another silver lining its overall employment remains largely consistent on a year-over-year basis. The number of Canadians employed in manufacturing decreased by approximately 18,800 between April 2024 and April 2025, in a sector that employs more than 1.8 million.

The second-largest decline came from the wholesale and retail trade sector, which lost 27,000 positions between March and April (a 0.9 per cent monthly loss), following a similar decline of 28,500 between February and March. Overall the sector employs more than 2.9 million Canadians.

Other industries that reported significant job losses in April 2025, according to Statistics Canada, include:

Business, building and other support services: 14,500 jobs lost (2.1 per cent loss)

Accommodation and food services: 8,500 jobs lost (0.7 per cent loss)

Health care and social assistance: 7,800 jobs lost (statistically insignificant in a sector that employs nearly 2.9 million)

Natural resources: 7,500 jobs lost (2.3 per cent loss)

Construction: 1,800 jobs lost (0.1 per cent loss)

Meanwhile, employment rose by 37,000 in public administration (a 3 per cent monthly gain), which Statistics Canada noted was the first significant increase for the sector since July 2024, mainly in temporary work, and coincided with the federal election.

Employment also increased by 23,700 between March and April in positions that Statistics Canada groups under finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing (a 1.6 per cent monthly gain). The agency noted that this continues an upward trend for the sector, which has gained 67,000 employees between October 2024 and April 2025.

Other industries that posted gains last month included:

Information, culture and recreation: 12,600 jobs added (1.5 per cent gain)

Transportation and warehousing: 8,200 jobs added (0.8 per cent gain)

Professional, scientific and technical services: 6,200 jobs added (0.3 per cent gain)

Educational services: 5,400 jobs added (0.3 per cent gain)

Services other than professional, scientific and technical; business, building and other support; educational; accommodation and food; and public administration (all mentioned above): 4,900 jobs added (0.6 per cent gain)

Utilities: 3,900 jobs added (2.5 per cent gain)

Agriculture: 2,900 jobs added (1.2 per cent gain)

Canada’s unemployment rate changes to 6.9 per cent

Statistics Canada’s April 2025 Labour Force Survey reported that Canada’s national unemployment rate changed from 6.7 per cent to 6.9 per cent.

However, while the job market in Canada has been difficult for many sectors, the unemployment rates for skilled professionals – including the specializations supported by Robert Half Canada’s staffing experts – continue to be well below the national average.

Unemployment rates by profession:

Business, finance and administration occupations, which includes finance and accounting, HR, and administration and customer service roles: 3.3 per cent (3.2 per cent in March 2025)

Natural and applied sciences and related occupations, which includes technology roles: 3.3 per cent (4.1 per cent in March 2025)

Management occupations, which includes marketing and creative roles: 2.1 per cent (2.5 per cent in March 2025)

Occupations in education, law and social, community and government services, which includes legal roles: 2.2 per cent (unchanged from March 2025)

Customer support roles, which fall outside the above Statistics Canada categories: 4.9 per cent (5.0 per cent in March 2025)

On a provincial basis, employment fell in Ontario for the second month in a row, by 35,000 between March and April (a 0.4 per cent monthly decline), following a decline of 28,000 between February and March. Alberta and Quebec both reported gains, of 18,000 and 15,000 jobs respectively.

However, Statistics Canada noted that while the number of full-time people employed in Quebec rose, so did the number of people looking for work, by 17,000, raising its unemployment rate by 0.3 per cent to 6 per cent. The employment gains in Alberta, meanwhile, weren’t statistically significant enough in a province that employs nearly 2.6 million to change its unemployment rate from 7.1 per cent.

Unemployment rates by province:

British Columbia: 6.2 per cent (6.1 per cent in March 2025)

Alberta: 7.1 per cent (unchanged from March 2025)

Saskatchewan: 4.3 per cent (4.9 per cent in March 2025)

Manitoba: 5.3 per cent (6.0 per cent in March 2025)

Ontario: 7.8 per cent (7.5 per cent in March 2025)

Quebec: 6 per cent (5.7 per cent in March 2025)

New Brunswick: 6.9 per cent (7.0 per cent in March 2025)

Prince Edward Island: 6.6 per cent (7.5 per cent in March 2025)

Nova Scotia: 7.2 per cent (6.1 per cent in March 2025)

Newfoundland and Labrador: 9.6 per cent (10 per cent in March 2025)

Need more context on the job market in Canada’s evolution over the past three months? Check out our previous updates:

Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: March Labour Force Survey

Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: February Labour Force Survey

Update on the 2025 Canada Job Market: January Labour Force Survey

Employer and worker confidence remain steady — and so is hiring

While many of the Canada job market’s latest numbers continue to indicate a challenging economic climate, the unemployment rates for skilled professionals align with Robert Half Canada’s newest Demand For Skilled Talent report, which found that nearly half – 46 per cent – of Canadian companies plan to add new permanent positions in the first half of 2025, while another 49 per cent plan to fill vacated positions and 54 per cent are increasing the number of contract professionals they enlist to support new projects during the same period.

Among hiring managers who plan to increase headcount, nearly half (47 per cent) cited company growth as the primary factor, while employee turnover rates (44 per cent), and new projects (41 per cent) were also identified as key factors.

Meanwhile, a Robert Half survey of 1,500 Canadian professionals found that 38 per cent have either started or are planning to start searching for a new job in the first half of 2025, while an additional 39 per cent say they are open to a new role if the right opportunity arises. The top reasons they cited for wanting a new position were:

A higher salary (41 per cent)

Better perks and benefits (31 per cent)

More remote flexibility than what their company offers (27 per cent)

Greater professional development opportunities (20 per cent)

For organizations seeking to hire these skilled professionals, the message is clear: Competition for top talent remains fierce and is likely to continue throughout the year. That’s why according to the 2025 Canada Salary Guide From Robert Half, companies are responding by offering the following:

Hybrid jobs (39 per cent)

Flexible work schedules (37 per cent)

Increased starting salaries (32 per cent)

New perks and benefits (30 per cent)

Numbers you can count on

Get the Report

Our latest Demand for Skilled Talent report provides Canadian employers with the latest employment trends and challenges across six professional fields: finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal, administrative and customer support, and human resources.

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