May 10, 2023 – From March-April, employment increased from 572.3 thousand to 590.9 thousand in Ontario, which was larger than the figure from April 2022 (581.5 thousand). The labour force grew from 622.7 thousand to 630.1 thousand. This brought the labour force close to the record highs seen last summer.
The combination of a large increase in unemployment and a modest increase in labour force resulted in a notable decrease in the unemployment rate, down to 6.2 per cent from 8.1 per cent. Although this is much higher than the unemployment rate from April 2022 (5.1 per cent), it is in line with the level from April 2019 (6.5 per cent) and relatively low in a historic context; from the year 2000 onward (excluding the pandemic era), the unemployment rate in April tends to be around eight to 10 per cent or higher. The overall Ontario unemployment rate was 4.9 per cent, down from 5.4 per cent in March 2023.