The unemployment rate in Canada rose 0.6 percentage points to 9.4 percent in January 2021, the highest since August 2020. Meanwhile, the economy shed 213 thousand jobs, well above market forecasts of a 47.5 thousand decline due to part-time work (-225 thousand). The labour force participation rate, defined as the percentage of the population aged 15 and older who are employed or unemployed, fell 0.3 percentage points in January to 64.7%, the lowest rate since August 2020. The youth unemployment rate climbed to 19.7 percent from 17.8 percent in the previous month, the highest since August. source: Statistics Canada

Unemployment Rate in Canada averaged 7.63 percent from 1966 until 2021, reaching an all time high of 13.70 percent in May of 2020 and a record low of 0.20 percent in December of 2020. This page provides - Canada Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Canada Unemployment Rate - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on March of 2021.

Unemployment Rate in Canada is expected to be 8.20 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Unemployment Rate in Canada to stand at 7.50 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Canada Unemployment Rate is projected to trend around 6.50 percent in 2022, according to our econometric models.

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Canada Unemployment Rate

Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
9.40 8.80 13.70 2.90 1966 - 2021 percent Monthly


Calendar GMT Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2020-11-06 01:30 PM Oct 8.9% 9% 8.8% 9%
2020-12-04 01:30 PM Nov 8.5% 8.9% 8.9% 8.8%
2021-01-08 01:30 PM Dec 8.6% 8.5% 8.6% 8.5%
2021-02-05 01:30 PM Jan 9.4% 8.8% 8.9% 8.7%
2021-03-12 01:30 PM Feb 9.4% 9.3% 9.4%
2021-04-09 12:30 PM Mar
2021-05-07 12:30 PM Apr
2021-06-04 12:30 PM May
Go to our Calendar for more events. Or learn more about the Calendar API for direct access.


News Stream
Canada Jobless Rate Rises to 5-Month High
The unemployment rate in Canada rose 0.6 percentage points to 9.4 percent in January 2021, the highest since August 2020. Meanwhile, the economy shed 213 thousand jobs, well above market forecasts of a 47.5 thousand decline due to part-time work (-225 thousand). The labour force participation rate, defined as the percentage of the population aged 15 and older who are employed or unemployed, fell 0.3 percentage points in January to 64.7%, the lowest rate since August 2020. The youth unemployment rate climbed to 19.7 percent from 17.8 percent in the previous month, the highest since August.
2021-02-05
Canada Jobless Rate Rises to 8.6% in December
The unemployment rate in Canada increased to 8.6 percent in December of 2020 from 8.5 percent in the previous month, in line with market expectations. The economy shed 62.6 thousand jobs, above forecasts of a 27.5 thousand drop as part-time employment was down by 99 thousand while full-time employment rose by 36.5 thousand. The labour force participation rate decreased to 64.9 percent from 65.1 percent in the prior month, the lowest since August. The youth unemployment rate rose to 17.7 percent from 17.4 percent in the previous month.
2021-01-08
Canada Jobless Rate Unexpectedly Falls
The unemployment rate in Canada decreased to 8.5 percent in November of 2020 from 8.9 percent in the previous month and compared to market expectations of 8.9 percent. Meanwhile, the economy added 62 thousand jobs, above forecasts of a 20 thousand gain as full-time employment rose by 99 thousand and part-time employment was down by 37 thousand. The labour force participation rate decreased to 65.1 percent from 65.2 percent in the prior month, compared to a consensus of 65.2 percent. The youth unemployment rate went down to 17.4 percent from 18.8 percent in the previous month, the lowest since March.
2020-12-04
Canada Jobless Rate Falls Less than Expected
The unemployment rate in Canada fell to 8.9 percent in October of 2020 from 9.0 percent in the previous month and compared to market expectations of 8.8 percent. The jobless rate fell for the fifth successive month, down from an all-time high of 13.7% reached in May as a result of the COVID-19 economic shutdown, but still remaining well above 5.6% reported in February. The economy added 83.6 thousand jobs, still missing forecasts of a 100 thousand gain, due to both full-time work (+69.1 thousand) and part-time employment (+14.5 thousand). The labour force participation rate increased to 65.2 percent from 65 percent in the prior month, above consensus of 65 percent. The youth unemployment rate went down to 18.8 percent from 18.9 percent in September.
2020-11-06

Canada Unemployment Rate
In Canada, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force.