The Daily — Labour Force Survey, March 2025 (2025)

Released:2025-04-04

Highlights

Employment fell by33,000(-0.2%) in March and the employment rate declined0.2percentage points to60.9%. The unemployment rate rose0.1percentage points to6.7%.

In March, employment declined among men aged55years and older (-21,000; -0.9%) while there was little change for other major demographic groups.

Employment declined in wholesale and retail trade (-29,000; -1.0%), as well as information, culture and recreation (-20,000; -2.4%). There were increases in the 'other services', such as personal and repair services (+12,000; +1.5%) and utilities (+4,200; +2.8%).

Employment fell in Ontario (-28,000; -0.3%) and Alberta (-15,000; -0.6%), while it increased in Saskatchewan (+6,600; +1.1%). Employment was little changed in the other provinces in March.

Total hours worked rose0.4% in March, following a decline of1.3% in February. On a year-over-year basis, total hours worked were up1.2%.

Average hourly wages among employees were up3.6% (+$1.24to $36.05) on a year-over-year basis in March, following growth of3.8% in February (not seasonally adjusted).

Employment falls in March

Employment decreased by33,000(-0.2%) in March, the first decrease since January2022. The decline in March followed little change in February and three consecutive months of growth in November, December and January totalling211,000(+1.0%).

The employment decline in March was driven by a drop in full-time work (-62,000; -0.4%). Full-time employment had followed a strong upward trend in the second half of2024and had held steady in January and February2025.

The employment rate—the proportion of the population aged15and older who are employed—fell0.2percentage points to60.9% in March. This partially offset an increase of0.3percentage points that had been observed from October2024to January2025.

Private sector employment fell by48,000(-0.3%) in March, following little change in February and a cumulative increase of97,000(+0.7%) from November2024to January2025. On a year-over-year basis, the number of employees in the private sector was up by175,000(+1.3%).

Public sector employment was little changed for a third consecutive month in March and was up92,000(+2.1%) compared with a year earlier. Self-employment was also little changed in March and was up81,000(+3.0%) on a year-over-year basis.

Employment declines among men aged55and older

Employment fell by21,000(-0.9%) among men aged55years and older in March, bringing the cumulative decline for this group since the beginning of the year to47,000(-1.9%). The employment rate for men aged55and older fell0.4percentage points to38.8% in March, the third consecutive monthly decline. Among women aged55and older, the employment level and the employment rate were both little changed in March.

Among core-aged men (25to54years old), employment edged down (-16,000; -0.2%) in March and the employment rate fell0.4percentage points to86.3%. Employment held steady in March among core-aged women, and the employment rate for this group was little changed at80.5%.

In March, employment was little changed for youth (aged15to24). On a year-over-year basis, the employment rate was down for both young women (-1.3percentage points to54.6%) and young men (-1.0percentage points to53.4%).

Unemployment rate rises to6.7%

The unemployment rate rose0.1percentage points to6.7% in March, the first increase since November2024. The unemployment rate had trended up from5.0% in March2023to a recent high of6.9% in November2024, before falling by0.3percentage points from November2024to January2025, in the context of robust employment growth at the end of2024and in early2025.

Since March2024, the unemployment rate has remained above its pre-COVID-19pandemic average of6.0% (from2017to2019).

In March2025, the unemployment rate rose among women aged15to24(+1.4percentage points to13.1%), as more young women looked for work. The unemployment rate was little changed across other major demographic groups.

Unemployed people face more difficulties finding work in March compared with a year earlier

In total, there were1.5million unemployed people in March, up36,000(+2.5%) in the month and up167,000(+12.4%) on a year-over-year basis.

Among those who were unemployed in February,14.7% became employed in March. This was lower than the corresponding proportion in March2024(18.6%) (not seasonally adjusted).

Long-term unemployment has also risen; the proportion of unemployed people searching for work for27weeks or more stood at23.7% in March2025, up from18.3% in March2024.

People may become unemployed following a job loss, or after voluntarily leaving a job. Others may not have worked recently, either because they are new entrants to the labour market, or because they have been without a job for a longer period.

Among the1.5million people who were unemployed in March, the largest share (44.1%) had lost their job due to a lay-off within the previous12months (down from47.0% in March2024) (not seasonally adjusted). Of these unemployed people,18.4% last worked in construction, while12.4% last worked in wholesale or retail trade. The proportion of the unemployed who last worked in manufacturing (9.3%) was little changed on a year-over-year basis.

Another41.5% of unemployed people in March had not worked in the previous12months (or had never worked). This proportion was up from35.4% in March2024. People in this group may be more vulnerable to variations in labour market conditions and are generally not eligible to receive regular Employment Insurance benefits.

A further14.3% of those who were unemployed in March had voluntarily left their previous job, down from17.6% in March2024. Reasons for leaving a job and searching for a new one may include dissatisfaction, going to school, or caring for family members.

Fewer people employed in wholesale and retail trade and information, culture and recreation

Employment fell by29,000(-1.0%) in wholesale and retail trade in March, partly offsetting an increase of51,000in February. On a year-over-year basis, the number of people working in wholesale and retail trade was little changed in March.

Following five months of little change, employment decreased by20,000(-2.4%) in information, culture and recreation in March. Despite the decline, employment in this industry was little changed on a year-over-year basis.

In March, employment also fell in agriculture (-9,300; -3.9%), while there were gains in "other services" (such as personal and repair services) (+12,000; +1.5%) and in utilities (+4,200; +2.8%).

Employment declines in Ontario and Alberta, while Saskatchewan posts an increase

Employment in Ontario decreased by28,000(-0.3%) in March, the first significant decline in the province since December2023. Employment losses were concentrated in information, culture and recreation (-23,000: -6.2%) and in business, building and other support services (-13,000; -4.2%). The unemployment rate in Ontario increased0.2percentage points to7.5% in March.

In Alberta, employment fell by15,000(-0.6%), following two months of little change and a cumulative increase of54,000(+2.1%) in November and December2024. The employment decline in the province was concentrated in manufacturing (-11,000; -7.5%) and wholesale and retail trade (-9,200; -2.5%). The unemployment rate in Alberta increased by0.4percentage points in March to7.1%.

In Saskatchewan, employment rose by6,600(+1.1%), the second increase in four months. On a year-over-year basis, employment in the province was up by19,000(+3.1%). The unemployment rate fell0.5percentage points to4.9% in March, and remained the lowest among all provinces.

In Quebec, employment held steady for the fourth consecutive month, while the unemployment rate rose0.4percentage points to5.7%, as more people searched for work. On a year-over-year basis, employment in the province was up by88,000(+1.9%) in March, with gains concentrated in the second half of2024.

In the spotlight: Employment rate rises in the Northwest Territories on a year-over-year basis

According to the most recent official population estimates, the three territories were home to133,600people in the first quarter of2025, up1.8% from the same quarter in2024. This total includes47,100people living in Yukon,45,100living in the Northwest Territories and41,400living in Nunavut.

In both the Northwest Territories and Yukon, employment rates remained above the national average in March. The employment rate in the Northwest Territories rose2.1percentage points to68.1% in the12months to March2025, partially offsetting a decline in the preceding year (from March2023to March2024). In Yukon, the employment rate in March2025(71.8%) was little changed from a year earlier (not seasonally adjusted, three-month moving averages).

In Nunavut, the employment rate was53.6% in March and was little changed from the same month in2024. According to the2021Census of Population, Inuit represent84% of the population of Nunavut. The employment rate for Inuit in Nunavut was45.0% in March, little changed from a year earlier, and close to half the corresponding rate for the non-Indigenous population (86.5%) in the territory.

In the spotlight: Most self-employed workers not covered by health, dental, and disability insurance

Self-employed workers make unique contributions to the economy and society, and typically have more autonomy and control over their schedule and work activities. However, self-employed workers tend to experience more financial risks than employees and may be more vulnerable to changing economic conditions. Moreover, self-employed workers do not have access to dental, medical or disability benefits from an employer.

After recording virtually no growth in2022and2023, self-employment has grown in the second half of2024and in early2025. In March2025, there were2.7million self-employed workers in Canada, up81,000(+3.0%) from the same month in2024. Despite this increase, the proportion of all workers who were self-employed (13.1%) was below its pre-pandemic average of14.9% recorded from2017to2019.

In March, the Labour Force Survey (LFS) asked self-employed workers if they were covered by different types of private insurance plans, excluding coverage by provincial or other government insurance. Among self-employed workers aged15to69,43.3% were covered by a supplementary health care plan, while36.4% were covered by a dental plan, and25.3% by disability insurance (not seasonally adjusted).

In comparison,67.3% of employees had access to either a supplementary health care plan or a dental plan and57.1% had access to disability insurance through an employer.

Self-employed workers with larger and more established businesses were more likely to be covered by all three forms of insurance. For example, half (49.8%) of incorporated self-employed workers with employees had a supplementary health care plan, compared with39.5% of unincorporated self-employed workers without employees.

Products

More information about the concepts and use of the Labour Force Survey is available online in the Guide to the Labour Force Survey (Catalogue number71-543-G).

The product "Labour Force Survey in brief: Interactive app" (Catalogue number14200001) is also available. This interactive visualization application provides seasonally adjusted estimates by province, sex, age group and industry.

The product "Labour Market Indicators, by province and census metropolitan area, seasonally adjusted" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is also available. This interactive dashboard provides customizable access to key labour market indicators.

The product "Labour Market Indicators, by province, territory and economic region, unadjusted for seasonality" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is also available. This dynamic web application provides access to labour market indicators for Canada, provinces, territories and economic regions.

The product "Labour market indicators, census metropolitan areas, census agglomerations and self-contained labour areas: Interactive dashboard" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is also available. This dashboard allows users to visually explore the estimates using an interactive map as well as time series charts and tables.

The product Labour Force Survey: Public Use Microdata File (Catalogue number71M0001X) is also available. This public use microdata file contains non-aggregated data for a wide variety of variables collected from the Labour Force Survey. The data have been modified to ensure that no individual or business is directly or indirectly identified. This product is for users who prefer to do their own analysis by focusing on specific subgroups in the population or by cross-classifying variables that are not in our catalogued products.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).