Labour market report, October 2017
Employment in Ontario increased in October. Get the details in this report.
Quick facts
In October 2017:
- there were 11.7 million people in Ontario aged 15 years or older
- 7.6 million (65%) were either working or actively looking for work
- 7.2 million (61%) were employed and 81% of them had a full time job
- Ontario’s unemployment rate was 5.9% (450,800 unemployed people)
Employment increased in October
Employment in Ontario increased by 5,200 jobs in October, following an increase of 34,700 jobs in September.
Chart 1 shows employment in Ontario from January 2012 to October 2017.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 282-0087, (seasonally adjusted data).
Full-time vs. part-time
There were 22,000 new full-time jobs in October. Part-time employment declined by 16,700.
Employment increase/decrease by age
Youth employment (those aged 15 to 24) increased by 13,700 jobs in October, following an increase of 8,800 jobs in September.
People aged 25 to 54 saw an increase in employment (600) compared to September, while those 55 and older lost 9,100 jobs.
Employment in Canada increased by 35,300 in October, following an increase of 10,000 jobs in September.
Unemployment rate increased to 5.9%
Chart 2 shows unemployment rates, Ontario and Canada, January 2012 to October 2017.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 282-0087, (seasonally adjusted data).
Ontario’s unemployment rate increased to 5.9% in October from 5.6% in September.
Canada’s unemployment rate increased to 6.3% in October, after remaining at 6.2% in August and September.
Lowest and highest unemployment rates
Chart 3 shows Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) with highest and lowest unemployment rates in Canada, October 2017.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 282-0135, (seasonally adjusted data to reduce volatility caused by small sample size).
Hamilton (4.0%) recorded the lowest unemployment rate in Ontario in October and the second lowest rate in Canada (behind Victoria, BC).
St. John’s, Newfoundland (8.8%) recorded the highest unemployment rate in Canada, while St. Catharines-Niagara (7.0%) had the highest rate in Ontario.
Year-over-year comparisons
In the first ten months of 2017, employment in Ontario increased by an estimated 99,700 jobs for adults 25 years and older compared to the first ten months of 2016.
Employment increase and decrease by education level
Chart 4 shows Ontario employment change by highest level of education attained, aged 25 and older, October 2016 and October 2017, year-to-date.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 282-0003, unadjusted data.
People with a high school level education gained the most jobs, with 90,500 net new jobs.
Those with a university degree had job gains of 48,100, while those with a postsecondary education (PSE) certificate or diploma lost 4,700 jobs.
People with less than high school education had job losses of 13,000 and those with some PSE had job losses of 21,200.
Unemployment rate by education level
The unemployment rate for adults aged 25 and older with PSE credentials was 4.4% over the first ten months of 2017, down from 4.8% a year earlier.
The unemployment rate for adults without PSE credentials was 6.6%, down from 6.9% a year earlier.
Employment increase and decrease by occupation
Chart 5 shows Ontario employment change by occupation, between October 2016 and October 2017, year-to-date.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 282-0041, unadjusted data.
Seven of the ten major occupational groups in Ontario had employment growth over the first eight months of 2017 compared to a year earlier.
Learn more about the National Occupation Classification (NOC) system.
These occupations gained the most jobs:
- Health (56,400)
- Sales and service (43,400)
- Management (35,400)
These occupations lost jobs:
- Education, law and social, community and government services (60,700)
- Business, finance and administration (6,700)
- Natural resources, agriculture and related production (4,600) occupations
Long-term unemployment decreased
Chart 6 shows Ontario’s long-term unemployed (27 weeks or more) as a percent of total unemployment, October 2009 to October 2017, year-to-date.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 282-0047, unadjusted data.
Over the first ten months of 2017, an estimated 89,500 people were unemployed for 27 weeks or more, or in long-term unemployment. This was down from 98,800 in the first ten months of 2016 and well above pre-recessionary levels.
Long-term unemployed individuals accounted for 19.2% of the total number of unemployed people in the first ten months of 2017. Compare this with 19.6% a year earlier and a long-term unemployment rate of 17.6% in the first ten months of 2009.
Average time in long-term unemployment
The average time in unemployment decreased to 19.2 weeks over the first ten months of 2017 from 19.8 weeks a year earlier.
Download data
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey
October 2017 Labour Market Report:
- CSV, Chart 1, employment in Ontario from January 2012 to October 2017, 1Kb
- CSV, Chart 2 unemployment rates, Ontario and Canada, January 2012 to October 2017, 2Kb
- CSV, Chart 3 Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) highest and lowest unemployment rates, 2Kb
- CSV, Chart 4, Chart 4, Ontario employment change by highest level of education, aged 25 and older, 99Kb
- CSV, Chart 5, Ontario employment change by occupation, 12Kb
- CSV, Chart 6, Ontario’s long-term unemployed, 15Kb