Canada's employment increased by 88,000, or 0.4% month over month, in May and the unemployment rate fell 0.3 percentage point to 6.6%, said the country's statistical agency on Friday.
The job gains and unemployment rate were better than the consensus gain of 10,100 and a consensus jobless rate of 6.9% provided by MUFG.
The employment increase of 88,000 in May is the first "significant" employment gain since November 2025, noted Statistics Canada in a statement.
Employment increased among core-aged (25 to 54 years old) women (+31,000; +0.5% month over month), core-aged men (+25,000; +0.3%), and youth aged 15 to 24 (+22,000; +0.8%).
Employment increased in several industries, most notably in construction (+27,000; +1.7% month over month), information, culture and recreation (+19,000; +2.3%), transportation and warehousing (+19,000; +1.7%) and accommodation and food services (+17,000; +1.5%). On the other hand, employment decreased in wholesale and retail trade (-35,000; -1.2%).
Average hourly wages among employees increased 3.0%, or $1.10 to $37.24, on a year-over-year basis in May, following growth of 4.5% not seasonally adjusted in April, added StatsCan.
The monthly LFS estimates are based on a sample and are therefore subject to sampling variability. As a result, monthly estimates will show more variability than trends observed over longer time periods. This analysis focuses on differences between estimates that are statistically significant at the 68% confidence level.
LFS estimates at the Canada level don't include the territories. The LFS estimates are the first in a series of labor market indicators released by StatsCan, which includes indicators from programs such as the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (SEPH); Employment Insurance Statistics; and the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey.