Canada shed 68,000 jobs in September, bringing losses over the past two months to 110,000 as unemployment climbed to 6.5 per cent, according to Statistics Canada.
The latest Labour Force Survey, released Friday, showed the second consecutive month of employment declines, following 42,000 jobs lost in August.
The September figures were far worse than economists expected. Forecasters had anticipated 9,200 new jobs, missing the actual result by more than 77,000 positions.
Full-time employment fell by 35,000 positions, while part-time employment declined by 33,000.
Public sector employment dropped by 70,000 positions, its fourth consecutive monthly decline, while self-employment fell by 23,000. Private sector employment was little changed.
Young Canadians were among the hardest hit, accounting for 48,000 job losses in September. Another 50,000 young people left the labour force, leaving the youth unemployment rate relatively unchanged at 13 per cent.
Women aged 25 to 54 also lost 28,000 jobs, pushing their unemployment rate to 5.3 per cent.
Quebec recorded the largest provincial decline, shedding 49,000 jobs, followed by British Columbia with 20,000. Alberta bucked the trend, adding 23,000 positions.
Canada’s labour force participation rate fell to 64.8 per cent, its lowest level since December 1997, excluding the pandemic. Statistics Canada attributed much of the longer-term decline to population aging.
Finding employment has also become more difficult. Just 30.6 per cent of Canadians unemployed in August found work in September, compared with 32.8 per cent a year earlier.
