Canada’s unemployment rate rose to 6.7% in October — Ontario 7.3%, Toronto area 7.4%

What happened

Statistics Canada released the Labour Force Survey for October on November 6, 2026. This monthly survey asks about 65,000 households each month and tells us how many people have jobs and how many are looking for work. The October survey week was October 11 to 17. These are the figures in the release and its tables (seasonally adjusted unless noted).

• The number of jobs barely changed in October. It fell in the two months before (September −68,000, August −42,000).
• The unemployment rate rose because 33,000 more people (+2.2%) looked for work. It was the second rise in a row, but the rate is still below the recent high of 6.9% in April 2026.
• By industry, wholesale and retail trade lost 29,000 jobs (−1.0%), while construction (+16,000, +0.9%) and educational services (+15,000, +1.0%) gained. Construction had 47,000 more jobs (+2.9%) than a year earlier.
• Private sector employees fell by 53,000 (−0.4%), the first drop since February. Public sector employees rose by 50,000 (+1.1%).
• In Ontario, the number of jobs barely changed for a third month. More people looked for work, so the unemployment rate rose from 7.0% to 7.3%. Alberta lost 24,000 jobs (−0.9%), and its rate rose to 7.3% (+0.9 pts).
• In the Toronto CMA, 3,804,300 people had jobs, up 17,700 in the month and up 60,100 (+1.6%) from a year earlier. The unemployment rate rose from 7.2% to 7.4%.

In a chart: the last three Octobers

These charts put the same month, October, side by side for three years. In all three, October 2025 was the highest. Canada and Ontario came down a little this October but are still higher than in October 2024. The Toronto CMA fell from 8.4% to 7.4%, close to October 2024 (7.5%).

• 6.7%Canada’s unemployment rate, October 2026 (+0.2 pts from September)
• 7.4%Toronto CMA unemployment rate, October 2026 (−0.9 pts from a year earlier)
• $37.89Average hourly wage, October 2026 (+2.2% from a year earlier)

The terms in plain words

• Labour Force Survey (LFS): a monthly Statistics Canada survey that asks households directly and sorts people into those who work, those who are looking for work, and those doing neither. The Canada figures do not include the three territories.
• Unemployment rate: among people who work or are looking for work (the labour force), the share who have no job and are looking. People not looking for work (such as students or retirees) are not counted. So if jobs stay the same but more people start looking, the rate goes up.
• Employment rate: the share of people aged 15 and older who have a job. 60.5% means about 60 out of every 100 people aged 15 and older are working.
• Percentage points (pts): the difference between two rates. If the unemployment rate goes from 6.5% to 6.7%, it rose 0.2 pts.
• Seasonally adjusted: numbers with the usual changes of the year taken out (for example summer jobs or the holiday shopping season). This lets you compare September with October directly.
• Toronto CMA (census metropolitan area): the Toronto area as defined by Statistics Canada. It includes the City of Toronto and several nearby cities, but its borders are not exactly the same as the GTA.

The background Statistics Canada gave

• Of the people who were unemployed in September, 18.9% found work in October. This is a little lower than a year earlier (19.8%) and well below the average for the same months in 2017 to 2019 (24.6%) (not seasonally adjusted).
• Of the roughly 1,500,000 people who were unemployed in October, 23.7% had been looking for work for 27 weeks or more without a break (long-term unemployment). This was higher than a year earlier (21.5%) and the 2017 to 2019 average (17.2%).
• The share of people who were working in September and became unemployed in October because of a layoff was 0.7%, about the same as a year earlier (0.6%).
• Jobs in wholesale and retail trade fell by 113,000 (−3.7%) over 12 months, and the drop was mostly in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia.
• In Canada, 29.7% of people aged 15 and older lived in a household that found it hard to pay for needs such as transportation, housing and food in the past 4 weeks, up 2.0 pts from a year earlier (27.7%). In the Toronto CMA it was 32.0% (a year earlier: 32.3%), and it was higher in Oshawa (38.4%) and Hamilton (35.9%).

What it means if you are buying, selling or renting in the GTA (explained)

This is not advice. It explains what the statistics mean in plain words. The unemployment rate is an average; it does not show your own household’s income or job situation.

• Buyers: banks and mortgage lenders check your income and job with documents at pre-approval and at final approval. If you work in an industry that is losing jobs, such as wholesale and retail trade, it is safer to work out your monthly payment at the stress-test rate and keep a good emergency fund (opinion). If your job or income changes before closing, it can affect your loan, so talk to your mortgage specialist first.
• Rates: on October 28, 2026 the Bank of Canada raised its policy rate from 2.25% to 2.50%. The Bank’s official schedule shows the next rate announcement on December 9, 2026. Job numbers are only one of many things the Bank looks at, so they alone cannot tell you the next decision (opinion).
• Sellers: the Toronto CMA had 60,100 more people working (+1.6%) than a year earlier, and its unemployment rate was 0.9 pts lower. This means the job picture is a little better than a year ago, but where prices go depends on sales, listings and rates together. For your local market, TRREB’s monthly statistics are the better guide (opinion).
• Renters: 32.0% of people in the Toronto CMA lived in a household that found it hard to pay for basic needs in the past 4 weeks. Rent increases follow Ontario law, so check the Ontario government’s official guidance for the limit that applies to your lease.
• Landlords: in the Labour Force Survey, the Toronto CMA population aged 15 and older was 28,600 (−0.5%) lower than a year earlier. Statistics Canada notes that its official population estimates are the official measure of population change, so it is better not to judge rental demand on this one number (opinion).

What to watch next

• According to Statistics Canada’s release, the November Labour Force Survey comes out on December 4, 2026 (survey week November 8 to 14). Check the date again on the Statistics Canada release schedule.
• For the Bank of Canada’s next rate announcement date and decision, check the official schedule on the Bank’s website.
• The numbers here are from the November 6, 2026 release. Statistics Canada revises seasonally adjusted figures for the previous 3 years around the end of each January.