Canadian Employment (December 2025)

Canadian employment was mostly unchanged from the previous month, with the economy gaining 8,200 jobs to 21.144 million in December. The employment rate held steady at 60.9 per cent, while the unemployment rate rose by 0.3 points to 6.8 per cent. Average hourly wages rose 3.4 per cent year-over-year to $37.06 in December.
           
Employment in B.C. decreased by 0.1 per cent to 2.945 million, with the provincial economy losing 3,300 jobs in December. Employment in Metro Vancouver decreased by 0.5 per cent to 1.687 million. The unemployment rate in B.C. was unchanged at 6.4 per cent in December. Meanwhile, Vancouver's unemployment rate rose by 0.4 points to 6.5 per cent in November. 

December’s jobs report marks an end to a three-month streak of employment growth, with the unemployment rate for December matching its annual average of 6.8 per cent. After a summer of deep job losses, the Canadian labour market rebounded during the past few months, cumulatively adding nearly 190,000 jobs since September. This bounce-back reinforces the Bank of Canada’s resolve to remain relatively neutral on rates this year, while they assess how the economy performed in the year’s final quarter relative to its most recent projection.