Unemployment rate jumps to 6.8% in December despite job gain

The unemployment rate rose to 6.8 per cent in December, StatCan said, up from 6.5 per cent in November.

The data showed job gains in Ontario and Quebec last month did not keep pace with labour force growth in both provinces, driving the jobless rate higher in those jurisdictions.

Growth nationally was concentrated in full-time work, StatCan said, and the healthcare and social assistance sector led gains with 21,000 positions added in December. Also seeing increases were the construction industry and “other services” – a broad category that includes professions from hairdressers to auto mechanics.

The professional, scientific and technical services sector meanwhile shed 18,000 positions to end the year, and the accommodation and food services industry also faced losses.

The trade-sensitive manufacturing sector added 4,300 jobs in December.

Average hourly wages rose 3.4 per cent year-over-year in December, cooling from 3.6 per cent in November.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected the economy would shed 5,000 positions in December, giving back some of the 181,000 jobs added in the previous three months.

Statistics Canada said the labour market faced headwinds from U.S. tariffs through much of 2025 but conditions improved for job seekers toward the end of the year.

The agency noted that youth in particular faced a difficult labour market this past year.

Young workers aged 15 to 24 accounted for 27,000 job losses in December, erasing some gains seen in November and October.

StatCan said the youth jobless rate rose half a percentage point to 13.3 per cent to end 2025. That figure was down from 14.7 per cent recorded in September, a 15-year high outside the COVID-19 pandemic.

Friday’s jobs report marks the Bank of Canada’s last look at the state of the labour market before its first interest rate decision of the year at the end of this month.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 9, 2026.