Employment by industry in rural Canada: Interactive dashboard

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This interactive dashboard presents monthly Labour Force Survey data on employment in rural and small town Canada. Users can explore and compare employment levels by industry and geography. The values reflect the most recent available estimates and are updated regularly to capture ongoing labour market trends.

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Key highlights – February 11, 2026
  • In January 2026, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — fell by 212,500 (-7.7%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate increased from 6.0% to 6.4%.
  • From January 2025 to January 2026, employment in rural and small town Canada, grew in wholesale and retail trade (+8,100; +2.2%); utilities (+900; +3.0%); and information, culture and recreation (+600; +1.0%) industries. At the same time, employment in these areas saw the largest year over year decline in manufacturing (-35,300; -11.8%), accommodation and food services (-31,500; -21.9%), construction (-31,400; -11.2%), and health care and social assistance (-30,000; -7.8%).
  • In January 2026, the largest year over year increases in unemployment rate were reported in rural and small town areas of Nova Scotia (+1.9 percentage points to 9.4%), Ontario (+1.3 percentage points to 5.8%), and Alberta (+1.0 percentage points to 6.0%). Rural and small town areas of Newfoundland and Labrador (16.2%) and Manitoba (4.8%) recorded the largest decline in unemployment rate, dropping 3.4 and 1.8 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Previous key highlights

Key highlights – January 14, 2026
  • In December 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — fell by 130,300 (-4.7%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate increased from 5.4% to 6.0%.
  • In rural and small town Canada, employment grew in wholesale and retail trade (+20,400; +5.5%); finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing (+4600; +5.0%); and utilities (+1100; +3.9%) industries from December 2024 to December 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas saw the largest year over year decline in health care and social assistance (-31,300; -8.0%); professional, scientific and technical services (-27,600; -19.4%) and accommodation and food services (-15,200; -10.9%).
  • In December 2025, the largest year over year increases in unemployment rate were reported in rural and small town areas of Ontario (+2.3 percentage points to 6.3%) and British Columbia (+2.2 percentage points to 5.3%). Rural and small town areas of Prince Edward Island (10.0%) and Manitoba (3.9%) recorded the largest decline in unemployment rate, dropping 4.3 and 2.5 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Key highlights – December 10, 2025
  • In November 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — fell by 151,900 (-5.5%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate increased from 5.1% to 5.5%.
  • In rural and small town Canada, employment grew in utilities (+6600; +25.2%), wholesale and retail trade (+5400; +1.4%) and accommodation and food services (+400; +0.3%) industries from November 2024 to November 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas saw the largest year over year decline in health care and social assistance (-40,800; -10.3%); construction (-24,500; -8.2%) and professional, scientific and technical services (-18,500; -13.1%).
  • In November 2025, the largest year over year increases in unemployment rate were reported in rural and small town areas of British Columbia (+2.8 percentage points to 6.2%), Nova Scotia (+1.6 percentage points to 9.2%) and Ontario (+1.3 percentage points to 5.1%). Rural and small town areas of Saskatchewan (3.4%) and Prince Edward Island (10.7%) recorded the largest decline in unemployment rate, dropping 2.8 and 2.2 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Key highlights – November 13, 2025
  • In October 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — fell by 166,600 (-5.9%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate increased from 4.2% to 5.1%.
  • In rural and small town Canada, employment grew in utilities (+5000; +16.8%) and transportation and warehousing (+1300; +1.0%) industries from October 2024 to October 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas saw the largest year over year decline in health care and social assistance (-25,800; -6.6%); forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas (-17,600; -13.8%); and construction (-17,400; -5.6%).
  • In October 2025, the unemployment rate in rural and small town areas of British Columbia (6.7%) and Alberta (5.2%) saw the greatest increases year over year, each up 1.8 percentage points. Rural and small town areas of Prince Edward Island (8.0%) and Saskatchewan (2.9%) recorded the largest decline in unemployment rate, dropping 2.6 and 1.3 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Key highlights – October 16, 2025
  • In September 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — fell by 129,300 (-4.6%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate increased from 4.1% to 4.9%.
  • In rural and small town Canada, employment grew in manufacturing (+12,200; +4.5%) and professional, scientific and technical services (+7,900; +6.2%) from September 2024 to September 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas saw the largest year over year decline in business, building and other support services (-26,100; -27.5%); finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing (-17,300; -15.4%); and forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas (-16,200; -12.3%) industries.
  • In September 2025, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of Prince Edward Island (8.6%) and Ontario (5.0%) saw the greatest increases year over year, up 2.2 and 2.0 percentage points, respectively. Rural and small town areas of British Columbia (3.9%) and Nova Scotia (5.0%) recorded the largest decline in unemployment rate, each down 1.3 percentage points, over the same period.

Key highlights – September 10, 2025
  • In August 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — fell by 10,500 (-0.4%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate remained relatively stable at 6.0% (+0.1 percentage points).
  • In rural and small town Canada, employment grew in construction (+33,000; +11.5%), manufacturing (+18,500; +6.5%) and transportation and warehousing (+14,800; +12.7%) from August 2024 to August 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas was down year over year in business, building and other support services (-19,800; -20.9%) and forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas (-14,900; -11.2%).
  • In August 2025, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of New Brunswick (9.5%) and Ontario (5.5%) saw the greatest increases year over year, each up 1.1 percentage points. Rural and small town areas of British Columbia (4.6%) recorded the largest decline in unemployment rate with a drop of 1.9 percentage points, followed by Saskatchewan (4.8%; -1.7 percentage points) and Prince Edward Island (5.5%; -1.5 percentage points), over the same period.

Key highlights – August 13, 2025
  • In July 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality — grew by 24,800 (+0.9%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate remained relatively stable at 5.1% (-0.2 percentage points).
  • In rural and small town areas, employment grew in manufacturing (+24,100; +8.2%), transportation and warehousing (+19,100; +16.3%) and wholesale and retail trade (+17,300; +4.8%) from July 2024 to July 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas was down year over year in health care and social assistance (-18,400; -4.5%) and public administration (-12,300; -8.1%).
  • In July 2025, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of Newfoundland and Labrador (12.8%) and Prince Edward Island (11.2%) saw the greatest increases year over year, up 4.0 and 2.4 percentage points, respectively. By comparison, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of British Columbia (4.0%) and Nova Scotia (7.5%) fell 2.4 and 1.2 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Key highlights – July 16, 2025
  • In June 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada — data unadjusted for seasonality— grew by 29,200 (+1.0%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate remained stable at 4.4% over the same period.
  • In rural and small town areas, employment grew in construction (+26,000; +9.0%), accommodation and food services (+20,500; +15.2%) and manufacturing (+19,900; +6.8%) from June 2024 to June 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas was down year over year in health care and social assistance (-23,500; -5.9%) and wholesale and retail trade (-16,700; -4.3%).
  • In June 2025, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of Newfoundland and Labrador (10.1%) and Prince Edward Island (6.3%) saw the greatest increases year over year, each up 1.1 percentage points. By comparison, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of British Columbia (4.1%) and Alberta (3.8%) fell 1.1 and 1.3 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Key highlights – June 10, 2025
  • In May 2025, employment in rural and small town Canada –data unadjusted for seasonality– grew by 84,800 (+3.1%) compared with a year earlier, while the unemployment rate remained steady at 5.0% (-0.1 percentage points) over the same period.
  • In rural and small town areas, employment grew in transportation and warehousing (+20,800; +17.0%), manufacturing (+19,200; +6.5%) and accommodation and food services (+15,100; 11.4%) from May 2024 to May 2025. At the same time, employment in these areas was down year over year in wholesale and retail trade (-29,800; -7.5%) and public administration (-9,600; -6.6%).
  • In May 2025, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of Prince Edward Island (9.5%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (13.7%) saw the greatest increases year over year, up 3.7 and 2.5 percentage points, respectively. By comparison, the unemployment rates in rural and small town areas of Alberta (5.3%) and New Brunswick (6.1%) each fell 1.6 percentage points over the same period.

Additional information

This tool displays data on employment and unemployment rates in rural and small town Canada based on the Labour Force Survey. Estimates are for the population aged 15 years and over and are not seasonally adjusted.

Contact  Rural Client Services for additional information or enquiries. 

Methodology

Estimates of change in employment – calculated as a percent change from period to period – are calculated for this visualization and not published elsewhere.

Considerations

Labour Force Survey 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. For more information, consult "Interpreting Monthly Changes in Employment from the Labour Force Survey." Estimates for smaller geographic areas or industries also have more variability. For an explanation of the sampling variability of estimates and how to use standard errors to assess this variability, consult "Section 7: Data quality" of the publication Guide to the Labour Force Survey (71-543-G).

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any data which would divulge information obtained under the Statistics Act that relates to any identifiable person, business or organization without the prior knowledge or the consent in writing of that person, business or organization. Various confidentiality rules are applied to all data that are released or published to prevent the publication or disclosure of any information deemed confidential. If necessary, data are suppressed to prevent direct or residual disclosure of identifiable data. If data for a specific region are not available, please contact the Rural Data Lab’s Rural Client Services for assistance.

Definitions

Key definitions are provided to help users navigate the interactive dashboard.

Census agglomeration (CA)
Formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centered on a population centre (known as the core). A CA must have a core population of at least 10,000, based on adjusted data from the Census of Population Program.
Census metropolitan area (CMA)
Formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centered on a population centre (known as the core). A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more must live in the core, based on adjusted data from the Census of Population Program.
Census subdivision (CSD)
A general term for municipalities (as determined by provincial and territorial legislation) or areas treated as municipal equivalents for statistical purposes (e.g., Indian reserves, Indian settlements and unorganized territories). Municipal status is defined by laws in effect in each province and territory in Canada.
Employment
Number of persons who, during the reference week, worked for pay or profit, or performed unpaid family work or had a job but were not at work due to own illness or disability, personal or family responsibilities, labour dispute, vacation, or other reason. Those persons on layoff and persons without work but who had a job to start at a definite date in the future are not considered employed. Estimates in thousands, rounded to the nearest hundred.
Functional urban area (CMA/CA)
Census subdivisions within census metropolitan areas (CMAs) or census agglomerations (CAs), according to Statistics Canada’s Standard Geographical Classification. For more information visit: Variant of Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) 2021 for Statistical area classification.
Gender

An individual's personal and social identity as a man, woman or non-binary person (a person who is not exclusively a man or a woman). Some people may not identify with a specific gender and a person's gender may change over time. For more information, refer to Gender of person.

Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is necessary to protect the confidentiality of responses provided. Individuals in the category “non-binary persons” are distributed into the other two gender categories and are denoted by the “+” symbol. The category “Men+” includes men, as well as some non-binary persons, while the category “Women+” includes women, as well as some non-binary persons.

Industry
The general nature of the business carried out by the employer for whom the respondent works (main job only). Industry estimates in this visualization are based on the 2022 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).
Labour force
Number of civilian, non-institutionalized persons 15 years of age and over who, during the reference week, were employed or unemployed. Estimates in thousands, rounded to the nearest hundred.
Rural and small town (non-CMA/CA)
Census subdivisions outside census metropolitan areas (CMAs) or census agglomerations (CAs), according to Statistics Canada’s Standard Geographical Classification. For more information visit: Variant of Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) 2021 for Statistical area classification.
Unemployment
Number of persons who, during the reference week, were without work, had looked for work in the past four weeks, and were available for work. Those persons on layoff or who had a new job to start in four weeks or less are considered unemployed. Estimates in thousands, rounded to the nearest hundred.
Unemployment rate
The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed persons expressed as a percentage of the labour force. The unemployment rate for a particular group (age, gender or geographical area) is the number unemployed in that group expressed as a percentage of the labour force for that group. Estimates are percentages, rounded to the nearest tenth.

Other resources

Labour Market Indicators, by province and census metropolitan area, seasonally adjusted

Labour Market Indicators, by province, territory and economic region, unadjusted for seasonality

Labour market indicators, census metropolitan areas, census agglomerations and self-contained labour areas: Interactive dashboard

Learn more

To find more rural and small town Canada products, visit:

Rural Canada Statistics Portal

Rural Statistics in Canada (45-20-0004)

Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin (21-006-X)

Questions? Contact Rural Client Services.

How to use

How to use this interactive visual

This interactive dashboard presents monthly Labour Force Survey data on employment and unemployment rate in rural and small town Canada. Users can explore the data by geography, industry, reference year and demographic characteristics to explore trends overtime.

Page filters: Geography and reference year

  • Use the drop-down menus to select geography and reference year. These selections apply to all visualization on the page.
  • Click the reset button to restore default filter settings.

Section 1: Monthly employment, by industry

  • A line chart displays data for monthly employment values (x1000).
  • A bar chart displays data for monthly change in employment.
  • Use the drop-down menus in this section to filter the data by area (rural and small town or functional urban area), industry, and class of worker.
  • Chart titles reflect the user's selected filters.

Section 2: Monthly unemployment rate, by all industries

  • A line chart displays data for monthly unemployment rate.
  • Use the drop-down menus in this section to filter the data by area (rural and small town or functional urban area), gender and age group.
  • Chart titles reflect the user's selected filters.

Keyboard shortcuts and screen reader tips

Keyboard shortcuts and screen reader tips are available by entering the visual and pressing Ctrl + Enter.

While in the visual, pressing Shift + ? will open the keyboard shortcuts.

When focus is on a visual, the data table can be displayed by pressing Alt + Shift + F11.

When in a chart and navigating betweem data points, display a tooltip by pressing CTRL + H.

More information

Note of appreciation

Canada owes the success of its statistical system to a long-standing partnership between Statistics Canada, the citizens of Canada, its businesses, governments and other institutions. Accurate and timely statistical information could not be produced without their continued co-operation and goodwill.

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Statistics Canada is committed to serving its clients in a prompt, reliable and courteous manner. To this end, the Agency has developed standards of service which its employees observe in serving its clients.

Copyright

Published by authority of the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada.

© His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Industry,

Use of this publication is governed by the Statistics Canada Open Licence Agreement.

Catalogue no. 71-607-X

Ottawa

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