OTTAWA, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- Canada's employment was little changed in October, following an increase in September and up by 303,000, or 1.5 percent, on a year-over-year basis, Statistics Canada said Friday.
According to the national statistical agency, the employment rate decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 60.6 percent in October, the sixth consecutive monthly decline. It fell 1.3 percentage points on a year-over-year basis and has been on a downward trend from a recent peak of 62.4 percent in February 2023.
The unemployment rate was unchanged at 6.5 percent in October, following a decline of 0.1 percentage points in September. On a year-over-year basis, the unemployment rate was up 0.8 percentage points in October, as 193,000, or 15.6 percent, more people searched for work or were on temporary layoff, the agency said.
In October, nearly 3 in 10 Canadians aged 15 and older were living in a household that had found it difficult or very difficult, in the previous four weeks, to meet its financial needs in terms of transportation, housing, food, clothing and other necessary expenses.
This was down from 33.1 percent in October 2023 and 35.5 percent in October 2022, though still above the figure of 20.4 percent recorded in October 2020 during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, Statistic Canada said.
