Quick facts

In May 2019:

  • There were 12.1 million people in Ontario aged 15 years or older
    • 7.9 million (65%) were either working or actively looking for work
    • 7.4 million (61%) were employed and 81% of them had a full-time job
  • Ontario’s unemployment rate was 5.2% (405,200 unemployed people)

Employment increased in May

Employment in Ontario increased in May (20,900), following an increase of 47,100 jobs in April.

Chart 1 shows employment in Ontario from January 2014 to May 2019.

Line graph for chart 1 shows employment in Ontario increasing from 6,843,000 in January 2014 to 7,438,000 in May 2019.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0019-01, (seasonally adjusted data).

Download data, chart 1

Full-time vs. part-time

Full-time employment accounted for all the net job gains (28,400). Part-time jobs declined by 7,500.

Employment increase/decrease by age

Youth employment (those aged 15 to 24) decreased by 9,000 jobs in May, after increasing by 28,700 jobs in April.

Employment for people aged 25 to 54 increased by 34,900 in May, compared to April. Those aged 55 and older lost 5,000 jobs.

Employment in Canada increased by 27,700 in May, following the largest employment increase on record in April (106,500).

Unemployment rate decreased to 5.2%

Chart 2 shows unemployment rates, Ontario and Canada, January 2014 to May 2019.

Line graph for Chart 2.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0019-01, (seasonally adjusted data).

Download data, chart 2

Ontario’s unemployment rate decreased to 5.2% in May from 6.0% in April. The decline in the rate was the largest percentage point decrease since September 1991 and was a result of a large drop in the number of people unemployed (-64,900). Ontario’s unemployment rate has remained at or below 6.0% since August 2017.

Canada’s unemployment rate decreased to 5.4% in May from 5.7% in April.

Unemployment rate by age

For people aged 15 to 24, the unemployment rate was 11.3% in May, down from 12.0% in April.

The unemployment rates for people aged 25 to 54 decreased to 4.1% in May from 5.1% in April and fell to 4.3% from 4.5% for those aged 55 and older.

Lowest and highest unemployment rates

Chart 3 shows Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) with highest and lowest unemployment rates in Canada, May 2019.

Bar graph for chart 3.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0294-01. (Seasonally adjusted data five-month moving average to reduce volatility caused by small sample size).

Download data, chart 3

Barrie recorded the highest unemployment rate in Ontario in May (7.3%), while St. John’s, Newfoundland recorded the highest unemployment rate in Canada (8.0%).

Hamilton recorded the lowest unemployment rate in Ontario in May (4.3%), while Victoria, Québec City recorded the lowest unemployment rate in Canada (2.8%).

Year-over-year comparisons

Over the first five months of 2019, employment in Ontario increased by 175,500 net jobs for adults 25 years and older compared to the first five months of 2018.

Employment increase and decrease by education level

Chart 4 shows Ontario employment change by highest level of education attained, aged 25 and older, May 2018 year-to-date to May 2019 year-to-date.

Bar graph for chart 4.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0019-01, unadjusted data

Download data, chart 4

Adults with a university degree led gains with 110,000 net new jobs, followed by those with a postsecondary certificate or diploma (83,400)

Individuals with some postsecondary education recorded job losses of 48,400.

People with less than high school education also recorded job losses (12,300), while those with high school education recorded job gains of 42,800.

Unemployment rate by education level

The unemployment rate for adults aged 25 and older with postsecondary education credentials was 4.2% in the first five months of 2019, up from 4.1% a year earlier.

The unemployment rate for adults without postsecondary education credentials was 6.4%, up from 6.2% a year ago.

Employment increase and decrease by occupation

Chart 5 shows Ontario employment change by occupation, May 2018 year-to-date to May 2019 year-to-date 

Bar graph for chart 5.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0297-01, unadjusted data.

Download data, chart 5

Eight of the ten major occupational groups in Ontario had net employment gains in over the fist five months of 2019 compared to a year earlier.

Learn more about the National Occupational Classification (NOC) system.

These occupations gained the most jobs:

  • sales and service (67,700)
  • trade, transport and equipment operators (49,000)
  • education, law and social, community and government services (31,500)

These occupations lost jobs:

  • management (27,800)
  • manufacturing and utilities (14,400)

Long-term unemployment decreased

Chart 6 shows Ontario's long-term unemployed (27 weeks or more) as a percentage of total unemployment, May 2011 year-to-date to May 2019 year-to-date

Bar graph for chart 6.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0056-01, unadjusted data.

Download data, chart 6

Over the first five months of 2019, an average of 69,500 people were unemployed for 27 weeks or longer, or long-term unemployed. This was down from 72,400 a year earlier.

Long-term unemployed individuals accounted for 15.3% of the total number of unemployed people in the first five months of 2019. This compared with 16.6% a year earlier.

Average time in long-term unemployment

The average time in unemployment decreased to 16.3 weeks in over the first five months of 2019 from 17.1 weeks a year earlier.

Download data

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey

May 2019 Labour Market Report:

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