April to June, 2025

Introduction

About the Ontario Employment Report

The Ontario Employment Report is released four times a year and provides an assessment of the current trends and developments in the Ontario labour market. The fourth quarter report is an annual report. The Ontario Employment Report is a companion report to the Ontario Economic Accounts, which provides an overall assessment of the current state of the Ontario economy.

Overview

Ontario’s labour market overview

Employment:

• +67,800 net jobs in Q2 2025, year-over-year
• +1,000 net full-time jobs in Q2 2025, year-over-year
• +21,200 net jobs in June 2025
• -10,600 net full-time jobs in June 2025

Unemployment rate:

• 7.8% in Q2 2025
• 7.8% in June 2025

Year-over-year, Ontario’s employment increased by 0.8% (+67,800) in the second quarter of 2025, while Canada’s employment grew by 1.5% (+319,100).

Ontario’s unemployment rate was 7.8% in the second quarter of 2025, higher than the Canadian rate of 6.8%.

In June 2025, Ontario’s employment increased (+21,200, +0.3%), driven by increases in part-time employment (+31,700, +2.1%), while full-time employment declined (-10,600, -0.2%). Canada also experienced an employment increase in June 2025 (+83,100, +0.4%), driven by employment increases in Alberta (+1.2%), Quebec (+0.5%) and Ontario (+0.3%).

In June 2025, the unemployment rate in Ontario edged down to 7.8% from 7.9% in May 2025. The unemployment rate in Canada also edged down from 7.0% in the previous month to 6.9% in June 2025.

While Ontario’s unemployment rate has been increasing since its recent low of 5.0% in April 2023, the current unemployment rate for June 2025 (7.8%) is only slightly higher than the historical average (7.4%). This trending up in the unemployment rate is also observed at the national level, as Canada’s unemployment rate has increased from its recent low of 5.0% in March 2023 to 6.9% in June 2025.

Year-over-year overview

Ontario’s labour market, January 2015 – June 2025 (seasonally adjusted)

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Between the second quarters of 2024 and 2025:

• Employment gains were driven by growth in part-time employment (+4.6%).
• Employment increased in all sectors: the private sector (+0.7%), the public sector (+0.6%) and the self-employed (+1.6%).
• Employment increased in services-producing industries (+1.4%) and decreased in goods-producing industries (-1.6%).
• Employment increased in four regions, with the highest growth rates in Northern Ontario (+2.0%) and Central Ontario (+1.6%), while employment declined in Southwestern Ontario (-2.3%).
• Employment increased for youth (+3.0%) and core-aged workers (+0.9%), while employment of older workers (-0.8%) declined.
• Hourly wage growth (+4.3%) exceeded inflation (+1.7%).

Type of Work

Employment change by work status, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024

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Year-over-year, part-time employment increased by 4.6% and full-time employment stayed relatively unchanged in the second quarter of 2025.

Employment change by employment sector, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024

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Year-over-year, employment increased by 0.7% in the private sector, 0.6% in the public sector,^{footnote 1[1]} and by 1.6% for the self-employed.

Industry and occupation

Employment change by industry, goods-producing industries, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024

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Employment in goods-producing industries decreased (-1.6%) in the second quarter of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024. Employment declines in manufacturing (-3.9%) and agriculture (-12.1%) were partially offset by increases in utilities (+22.1%), forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas (+6.1%), and construction (+0.3%).

Employment change by industry, services-producing industries, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024

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In the second quarter of 2025, employment in the services-producing industries (+1.4%) increased compared to the same period in 2024. All services-producing industries experienced employment growth except for transportation and warehousing (-5.8%), other services (except public administration) (-2.2%), and business, building and other support services (-1.9%). Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing (+4.2%) experienced the largest employment gain, followed by information, culture and recreation (+8.9%), and wholesale and retail trade (+2.2%).

Employment change by occupational group, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024^{footnote 2[2]}

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Year-over-year, sales and service occupations experienced the largest employment gain (+4.5%), followed by health occupations (+7.5%) and natural and applied sciences and related occupations (+4.0%). Five of ten occupational groups experienced a decline in employment, led by trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations (-4.3%).

Geographic region

Employment change by Ontario region, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024^{footnote 3[3]}

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Year-over-year, employment increased in all Ontario regions in the second quarter of 2025, except for Southwestern Ontario (-21,400, -2.3%). The Greater Toronto Area (GTA)^{footnote 4[4]} experienced the largest employment gain (+42,900, +1.1%), followed by Central Ontario (+30,200, +1.6%), Eastern Ontario (+8,400, +0.8%), and Northern Ontario (+7,600, +2.0%). Northern Ontario (+2.0%) and Central Ontario (+1.6%) experienced the highest rates of employment growth.

Unemployment rates by Ontario region, Q2 2025^{footnote 5[5]}

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In the second quarter of 2025, the unemployment rate increased in all regions. The GTA had the highest unemployment rate (9.0%), followed by Southwestern Ontario (7.3%), Central Ontario (6.7%), Eastern Ontario (6.4%), and Northern Ontario (5.4%).

Age and gender

Employment change by age group and gender, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024

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Compared to the same quarter last year, employment increased for core-aged workers aged 25 to 54 years (+0.9%) and youth aged 15 to 24 years (+3.0%), while older workers aged 55 years and over (-0.8%) experienced a decline in employment.

Year-over-year, employment increased more for men (+1.3%) than women (+0.3%).^{footnote 6[6]}

Unemployment rates by age group and gender, Ontario, Q2 2025

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In the second quarter of 2025, youth had the highest unemployment rate (16.6%), followed by core-aged individuals (6.7%) and older individuals (5.2%). Compared to the same period last year, the unemployment rate was unchanged for youth, while it increased 1.2 percentage points for core-aged individuals, and 0.6 percentage point for older individuals.

In the second quarter of 2025, the unemployment rate for men (8.1%) was higher than that of women (7.4%). Compared to the same period last year, the unemployment rate increased by 1.0 percentage point for women and 0.9 percentage point for men.

Education level and immigrant status

Employment rates by education level and immigrant status (core-aged population), Ontario, Q2 2025^{footnote 7[7]}

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In the second quarter of 2025, core-aged individuals with less than high school education continued to have the lowest employment rate (57.6%), while those with a university degree recorded the highest employment rate (87.3%), followed by those with a postsecondary certificate or diploma (83.7%) and those with high school education (72.3%).

Year-over-year, the employment rate for core-aged people decreased across all four education levels.

Those born in Canada had the highest employment rate (84.4%), while very recent immigrants had the lowest employment rate (76.6%).

Year-over-year, the employment rate decreased for the core-aged population born in Canada (-2.0 percentage point), established immigrants (-3.1 percentage points), as well as recent immigrants (-0.2 percentage point). The employment rate for very recent immigrants (+0.8 percentage point) increased.

Unemployment rates by education level and immigrant status (core-aged population), Ontario, Q2 2025^{footnote 8[8]}

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In the second quarter of 2025, the core-aged population with a university degree and those with a postsecondary certificate/diploma had the lowest unemployment rates (5.7% and 6.0%, respectively). Those with a high school diploma (9.1%) and less than high school education (13.7%)^{footnote 9[9]} had higher unemployment rates. Year-over-year, the unemployment rates of core-aged people increased across all education levels.

In the second quarter of 2025, the core-aged population born in Canada had the lowest unemployment rate (5.3%), while very recent immigrants had the highest unemployment rate (11.7%). Year-over-year, the unemployment rate increased for all groups by immigrant status.

Wages

Average hourly wage growth by type of work, Ontario, Q2 2025 over Q2 2024^{footnote 10[10]}

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In the second quarter of 2025, the average hourly wage of Ontario employees was $37.31, an increase of 4.3% from the second quarter of 2024.^{footnote 11[11]} Nominal wage growth exceeded Consumer Price Index inflation (1.7%) for the ninth consecutive quarter.

Full-time employees (+4.8%), part-time employees (+2.2%), permanent employees (+4.3%), temporary employees (+5.0%), employees with union coverage (+5.0%) and those without union coverage (+4.0%) all experienced increases in average hourly wages.

Methodological note

In the current issue, year-over-year change represents change between the averages in the second quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2025. Note that the Ontario Economic Accounts report primarily shows changes between two consecutive quarters.

This report uses seasonally adjusted data in charts displaying data with a monthly frequency in the Overview section.

Unadjusted data are used in charts and tables showing the changes for the current quarter compared with the same quarter for the previous year. Unadjusted data are also used to calculate annual averages, year-to-date averages and 2025 second quarter averages.^{footnote 12[12]}

All estimates in this report are based on Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS), which measures the current state of the national, provincial, and territorial labour market. The LFS is based on a household survey carried out monthly by Statistics Canada in reference weeks of each month. The reference periods for the three months of the second quarter of 2025 are April 13 to April 19, May 11 to May 17, and June 15 to June 21.

Appendix I

Overview of quarterly employment year-over-year, Ontario

Employment by Region (000)

Unemployment Rate by Region (%)

Total Employment by CMA (000)

Greater Toronto Area

Central Ontario

Eastern Ontario

Southwestern Ontario

Northern Ontario

Overview of monthly^{footnote 13[13]} labour force characteristics, Ontario