May 14, 2025
SUMMARY
Construction employment contracted -0.9% year-over-year (y/y) in April, in stark contrast to the 3.8% y/y increase in the labour force. This caused an atypical jump in the unemployment rate to 10.1%. Employment for women was once again down, at -17% y/y, whereas for men, it increased slightly at 1.8% y/y.
EMPLOYMENT
April employment was down -0.9% y/y versus a 3.8% y/y climb in the labour force. This was the main cause of a jump in the unemployment rate from 9.5% in March to 10.1% in April (highest unemployment rate in the past 10 years, outside of 2020). Ontario overall unemployment rate was surprisingly down slightly, sitting at 7.7% compared to the 7.8% from March. It seems that so far Ontario’s economy has held up in the face of the uncertainty from the trade war.
CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY DEMOGRAPHICS
Women’s employment decreased a large -17% y/y, similar to the -16% y/y seen in March. This decrease was once again heavily within the 55+ age category. In contrast, men’s employment increased 1.8% y/y and labour force increased a surprising 7.1% y/y (this being the main contributor to the increase in the unemployment rate figure). However, employment and labour force for men aged 55+ and older also contracted -9.8% y/y and -8.5% y/y respectively.
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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
