Canada’s labour market capped the year on an upbeat note, adding 91,000 jobs in December, shattering economist expectations.
Statistics Canada’s labour force survey on Friday said the unemployment rate decreased 0.1 percentage points to 6.7 per cent, also beating expectations.
The report, however, also highlighted decelerating wage growth, with average hourly wages rising 3.8 per cent year-over-year in December — the slowest growth since May 2022. November’s growth was 4.1 per cent, and 4.9 per cent in October.
With the unemployment rate remaining elevated and the threat of U.S. tariffs looming, economists are still calling for further cuts to the Bank of Canada’s policy interest rate later this month.
The education, transportation and finance sectors saw the largest gains in employment in December, while the public sector added 40,000 jobs.
Full-time employment rose by 56,000.
The report said the country’s employment rate rose for the first time since January of 2023, though it contextualized it against slowing population growth.
While private sector employment was little changed in December – up 27,000 jobs – self-employment rose for the first time since February, up by 24,000.
Still, while private and public sector jobs have bounced back and grown since the pandemic, self-employment continues to lag. While self-employment rose by 64,000 jobs in 2024, it’s still down about 100,000 jobs since February 2020.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 10, 2025.