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

Article

The latest Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey shows encouraging growth in the Canadian job market for June 2025, with several key indicators pointing to slow, but continued economic resilience.

Statistics Canada’s newest Labour Force Survey reports that the Canadian unemployment rate fell slightly by 0.1 percentage point between May and June 2025, from 7.0 to 6.9 per cent. This small change is likely due to the number of employed Canadians rising by 0.1 per cent to 60.9 per cent, marking the first increase since January 2025. With +345,300 more people were working in June 2025 compared with June 2024, according to Statistics Canada, the year-over-year gain is approximately 1.7 per cent.

Job Gains and Losses in June 2025

Canada’s Unemployment Rate

Provincial Unemployment Breakdown June 2025

Employer and Worker Confidence

Numbers You Can Count On

June labour force release 83k jobs increased, 6.9% unemployment rate, 345.3K employment gains YoY

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

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

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

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

Read the latest Robert Half Labour Market Overview Insights on Canada’s job market data, updated monthly

Job Gains and Losses in June 2025

On a sector-specific basis, the Canada job market’s largest employment gains in June came from the wholesale and retail trade sector, which gained +34,000 jobs between May and June. The second-largest gain was in the Health care and social assistance sector, which gained +17,000 jobs between May and June 2025. This was the first notable change for this sector since December 2024.

Other industries that reported job gains in June 2025, according to Statistics Canada, include:

Professional, scientific and technical services: 11,900 jobs gained (+0.6 per cent)

Manufacturing: 10,500 jobs gained (+0.6 per cent)

Accommodation and food services: 8,100 jobs gained (+0.7 per cent)

Construction: 7,600 jobs gained (+0.5 per cent)

Information, culture and recreation: 5,800 jobs gained (+0.7 per cent)

Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing: 4,800 jobs gained (+0.3 per cent)

Educational services: 2,000 jobs gained (+0.1 per cent)

Business, building and other support services: 1,200 jobs gained (+0.2 per cent)

Public administration: 800 jobs gained (+0.1 per cent)

Meanwhile, the Agriculture sector saw a significant loss of 6,000 jobs in June, a -2.6 per cent loss from the previous month. Employment also decreased in the Transportation and warehousing sector by 3,400 (-0.3 per cent MoM), and the Utilities sector by 1,700 (-1.1 per cent MoM).

Canada’s unemployment rate falls slightly to 6.9 per cent

Statistics Canada’s June 2025 Labour Force Survey reported that Canada’s national unemployment rate changed from 7.0 per cent to 6.9 per cent between May and June 2025. For businesses seeking to navigate this evolving labour market landscape, these statistics offer valuable insights for workforce planning and recruitment strategies in the latter half of 2025.

While the job market in Canada continues to fluctuate across many sectors, the unemployment rates for skilled professionals supported by Robert Half Canada’s staffing experts – continue to be well below the national average:

Business, finance and administration occupations, which includes finance and accounting, HR, and administration and customer service roles: 2.8 per cent (3.6 per cent in May 2025)

Natural and applied sciences and related occupations, which includes technology roles: 3.6 per cent (3.3 per cent in May 2025)

Management occupations, which includes marketing and creative roles: 2.1 per cent (2.2 per cent in May 2025)

Occupations in education, law and social, community and government services, which includes legal roles: 2.2 per cent (2.4 per cent in May 2025)

Customer support roles, which fall outside the above Statistics Canada categories: 4.1 per cent (4.9 per cent in May 2025)

Provincial Unemployment Breakdown June 2025

Unemployment rates by province:

British Columbia: 5.6 per cent (6.4 per cent in May 2025)

Alberta: 6.8 per cent (7.4 per cent in May 2025)

Saskatchewan: 4.9 per cent (4.2 per cent in May 2025)

Manitoba: 5.5 per cent (5.9 per cent in May 2025)

Ontario: 7.8 per cent (7.9 per cent in May 2025)

Quebec: 6.3 per cent (5.8 per cent in May 2025)

New Brunswick: 7.3 per cent (6.3 per cent in May 2025)

Prince Edward Island: 8.6 per cent (8.2 per cent in May 2025)

Nova Scotia: 6.7 per cent (6.5 per cent in May 2025)

Newfoundland and Labrador: 9.9 per cent (9.7 per cent in May 2025)

The June 2025 Labour Force Survey reveals significant regional variations across Canadian provinces, with Western and Central Canada driving most of the employment growth.

Alberta and Manitoba led the way with identical growth rates of 1.2%, translating to 30,000 and 8,500 new positions respectively. Quebec and Ontario, Canada's most populous provinces, contributed substantially to the national employment increase with Quebec adding 23,000 jobs (+0.5%) and Ontario gaining 21,000 positions (+0.3%). In contrast, Atlantic Canada faced challenges, with Newfoundland and Labrador experiencing a notable decline of 3,500 jobs (-1.4%) and Nova Scotia losing 3,400 positions (-0.6%).

This provincial disparity highlights the uneven nature of Canada's labour market recovery, with resource-rich western provinces and central manufacturing hubs outpacing the Atlantic region, potentially reflecting different industrial compositions and economic drivers across the country.

Previous Job Market Updates:

2025 Canada Job Market: May Labour Force Survey

2025 Canada Job Market: April Labour Force Survey

2025 Canada Job Market: March Labour Force Survey

Employer and Worker Confidence

While many of the Canada job market’s latest numbers continue to indicate a challenging economic climate, the unemployment rates for skilled professionals remain steady which align with Robert Half Canada’s latest Demand For Skilled Talent report. The research found that more than half, 58 per cent, of Canadian companies surveyed plan to add new permanent positions in the second half of 2025, while another 36 per cent plan to fill vacated positions. Nearly 7 in 10 business leaders are increasing the number of contract professionals they enlist to support new projects during the same period. The research also reveals, 82 per cent or more (percentage varies depending on the profession) of hiring managers reported challenges finding skilled talent in this current market.

For organizations seeking to hire skilled professionals, the message is clear: Competition for top talent remains fierce and is likely to continue throughout the latter half year. That’s why 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)

Data from the 2025 Canada Salary Guide From Robert Half

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.

Access the Guide

The 2025 Canada Salary Guide From Robert Half covers Canadian hiring and compensation trends across the six fields as well, incorporating exclusive data and input from surveys of thousands of Canadian workers and hiring managers, along with salary information for professionals we’ve matched with employers across the country.

Whether you’re launching a job search, actively hiring talent or developing a staffing strategy for your business, there’s no better source of insights into today’s salary and hiring trends.

What Industries Are Hiring Right Now in Canada? Q2 2025 Update

Canadian Remote Work Statistics and Trends 2025

The 2026 Canada Salary Guide From Robert Half: How the Data Comes Together