April 8, 2024
SUMMARY
Month-to-month employment and labour force were up in March and at a similar level as the same time last year. The unemployment rate increased slightly but was relatively low compared to March in previous years.
EMPLOYMENT
From February to March, employment increased from 554.7 thousand to 573.2 thousand, and the labour force increased from 594.3 thousand to 616.2 thousand. These numbers were similar to March 2023, with a 0.2% annual increase in employment, but a -1.0% change in labour force. The unemployment increased from 6.7% in February to 7.0% in March (same rate as for Ontario overall). This is a relatively low unemployment rate for March; the only times March unemployment rate was lower in the last ten years was in 2021 (6.5%) and 2022 (5.6%).
In terms of demographics, both female employment and labour force experienced annual increases at 10% and 11.2% respectively. This continues the trend which persisted for all of 2023. Conversely, male employment and labour force dipped slightly at a respective -1.4% and -2.8% annually.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Ali Ahmad
Research Analyst
Ontario Construction Secretariat (OCS)
180 Attwell Drive, Suite 360, Toronto, ON M9W 6A9
P 416.620.5210 ext. 222
aahmad@iciconstruction.com
