Canada loses 84,000 jobs in February as unemployment rises to 6.7%

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OTTAWA — Canada’s economy lost 84,000 jobs in February, one of the largest monthly declines outside the pandemic, as the national unemployment rate rose to 6.7 per cent, according to new figures from Statistics Canada.

The drop represents a 0.4 per cent decline in employment and was driven largely by losses in full-time work, which fell by about 108,000 positions during the month.

Youth employment was particularly affected, falling by 47,000 jobs and pushing the youth unemployment rate to 14.1 per cent.

Job losses were spread across multiple sectors. Wholesale and retail trade shed about 18,000 positions, while another 14,000 jobs were lost in a category that includes personal services and community organizations. Employment also declined in construction and manufacturing.

About 1.5 million Canadians were unemployed in February, with roughly 22.8 per cent classified as long-term unemployed after searching for work for at least 27 weeks.

Despite the drop in employment, average hourly wages rose 3.9 per cent compared with a year earlier.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada’s labour market remains relatively strong when compared with the United States, noting job creation over the past six months and rising wages.

“If you look at the performance of the labour market over the last six months we’ve created over 80,000 jobs,” Carney said while speaking in Norway during a visit with NATO partners.

Conservative employment critic Garnett Genuis criticized the government’s economic record following the release of the labour report.

“Today’s job numbers reveal a drop in over 100,000 full-time jobs in one month alone, the largest single-month decline since the Great Recession (outside the pandemic), and a drop of almost 50,000 youth jobs,” Genuis said in a statement.

Economists say the unexpected decline suggests Canada’s labour market may be cooling after stronger job gains late in 2025, though continued wage growth and relatively stable labour participation indicate some resilience in the economy.