Toronto Workforce Innovation Group

05/29/2026

Gooood Mooooorning, TO!

Canada’s entry-level job market is continuing to narrow, raising growing concerns about long-term workforce development and economic resilience.

📌 Highlights:
🔹81% of hiring managers say entry-level jobs now require more skills than in the past
🔹49% say AI could reduce workforce size
🔹45% say AI is more efficient for entry-level tasks than hiring and training new workers
🔹Recent graduate unemployment is projected to hit 10.6% in 2025, the highest level in 30 years outside the pandemic
🔹Employers warn shrinking entry-level opportunities could weaken future talent pipelines

As automation reshapes workplace expectations, the challenge for employers and policymakers alike will be preserving accessible pathways into the labour market for young and early-career workers. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/7iNapMU

Entry‑level work has long been the first rung on Canada’s economic ladder, but new research from an Express Employment Professionals–Harris Poll survey

05/28/2026

Gooood Moooorning, TO!

The Bank of Canada says it is not yet seeing widespread job losses from AI, but officials are closely monitoring how the technology could reshape Canada’s labour market in the years ahead.

📌 Highlights:
🔹The Bank of Canada says AI could boost productivity, wages, and investment without fuelling inflation
🔹AI adoption remains concentrated in finance and insurance
🔹Some roles may eventually be eliminated, while others are expected to be transformed or newly created
🔹The Bank says AI is currently being used more to automate routine tasks than replace workers outright
🔹AI being used to automate routine tasks is placing new graduates at risk, eliminating early skill-building roles
🔹Officials are encouraging youth and workers in AI-exposed industries to build AI-related skills

The conversation around AI and work continues to shift from replacement toward transformation — with growing emphasis on productivity, adaptation, and upskilling. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/DavKweZ

The Bank of Canada isn’t yet seeing widespread job losses from artificial intelligence but senior officials at the central bank are watching the labour market

05/28/2026

Gooood Eveeeeeening, TO!

Summer hiring season is ramping up in TO as the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) opens applications for thousands of seasonal jobs ahead of the 2026 fair.

📌 Details:
🔹The CNE is hiring for dozens of seasonal positions across operations and entertainment
🔹Roles include ticket sellers, gate attendants, traffic controllers, bartenders, info booth staff, and costume characters
🔹Applicants must generally be between 14 and 18+ depending on the role
🔹Workers must be available for all 18 days of the fair from Aug. 21 to Sept. 7
🔹Last year’s hiring process attracted a record 54,000 applications for roughly 5,000 positions

With competition for youth and seasonal work remaining intense across Toronto, major summer employers like the CNE continue to play an important role in creating entry-level job opportunities. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/Kd6UOk9

If you're currently on the hunt for a summer job in Toronto, make sure to start cleaning up your resume as soon as possible, because the Canadian Nat…

05/27/2026

Gooood Moooorning, TO!

Canada’s youth job market continues to face mounting pressure as young workers account for a disproportionate share of recent job losses heading into the summer hiring season.

📌 Highlights:
🔹Youth unemployment reached 13.8% in March compared to 6.7% overall
🔹Young workers represented 53% of job losses in early 2026 despite making up just 14% of the labour force
🔹Sectors like retail, food service, and manufacturing are hiring less
🔹Summer job postings in Canada were down 11% YoY at the end of March
🔹Employers are becoming more cautious amid trade tensions, rising costs, and AI-related uncertainty

The competition for entry-level and summer work remains intense across Canada, with many young Canadians struggling to secure even initial interviews. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/YWMmf0d

Thousands of young people are turning to job fairs to try and stand out in-person to find a gig for this summer, but competition remains intense.

05/27/2026

Gooood Moooooorning, TO!

As Canada’s labour market continued to soften in April and the economy shed roughly 18,000 jobs, the national unemployment rate ticked up to 6.9%.

📌 Highlights:
🔹Youth unemployment rose to 14.3%
🔹Full-time employment declined while part-time work increased
🔹Long-term unemployment reached 22.5%
🔹Core-aged men saw unemployment rise to 6.1%
🔹Economists continue to describe Canada’s labour market as “underwhelming”
🔹Weak hiring, not widespread layoffs, remains a key concern

The growing shift from full-time to part-time work is becoming an important trend to watch across Canada’s labour market in 2026. Full details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/mXFLrwf

The youth unemployment rate, which is the rate of unemployment among Canadians aged 15 to 24, rose by half a percentage point to 14.3 per cent.

05/26/2026

Gooood Eveeeeening, TO!

Canada’s labour market showed further signs of strain in April as the national unemployment rate climbed to 6.9%, a six-month high, while full-time employment continued to weaken.

📌 Details:
🔹Canada lost 17,700 jobs in April
🔹Full-time employment fell by 46,700 positions
🔹Youth unemployment rose to 14.3%
🔹Participation rate edged up to 65.0%, signalling more people are actively job searching
🔹Average hourly wages for permanent employees grew 4.8% YoY
🔹Goods-producing sectors tied to trade exposure continued to see employment declines

The latest data points to a labour market still navigating trade uncertainty, tariff pressures, and slowing full-time hiring momentum. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/akJTdyH

Canada's unemployment rate rose to a six-month high in April to 6.9% as the economy lost a ‌net 17,700 jobs, Statistics Canada data showed on Friday, indicating continued weakness in a labor market that has struggled in the face of U.S. tariffs and trade uncertainty.

05/26/2026

Gooood Moooorning, TO!

Canada’s summer hiring market appears to be stabilizing in 2026 after several years of decline, but youth employment conditions remain softer than pre-2023 levels.

📌 Details:
🔹Canadian summer job postings were up 4% YoY in early May
🔹Summer postings remain 37% below their 2022 peak
🔹Camp-related hiring declined slightly, while demand increased for painters, warehouse workers, admin assistants, and youth workers
🔹Youth employment gains during summer months have been weaker since 2023
🔹Summer job demand is continuing to mirror broader labour market conditions

The data suggests Canada’s youth labour market may be stabilizing but not yet rebounding, as seasonal hiring remains cautious amid broader economic softness. Read the full article here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/qmBSj13

After declining steadily between 2022 and 2025, Canadian summer job postings have been stable so far in 2026, and as of early May, were up 4% from a year earlier.

05/26/2026

Gooood Evveeeening, TO!

Canada’s labour market showed little movement in April, but unemployment continued to edge upward as more Canadians searched for work.

📌 Highlights:
🔹National unemployment rate rose to 6.9%
🔹Ontario added 42,000 jobs (+0.5%)
🔹Ontario’s unemployment rate edged down to 7.5%
🔹Youth unemployment climbed to 14.3%
🔹Average hourly wages rose 4.5% year-over-year
🔹Employment gains were concentrated in health care, accommodation & food services, and support services

While wage growth remains relatively strong, labour market softness continues to show up in youth employment and full-time job losses. Full article here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/bSWZXIi

05/25/2026

Gooood Mooooorning, TO!

Canada’s unemployment rate climbed to 6.9% in April, a seven-month high,as job creation continued to lag behind labour force growth.

📌 Highlights:
🔹Canada lost 18,000 jobs in April
🔹Full-time employment dropped by 47,000 positions
🔹Part-time employment increased by 29,000
🔹Youth unemployment rose to 14.3%
🔹Canada’s unemployed population climbed to 1.57 million
🔹Labour force growth continued to outpace available jobs

The latest labour market data suggests Canada’s employment slowdown is being driven less by layoffs and more by weak hiring and labour force expansion. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/JH404Ok

Canada’s job market saw its footing slip last month. Statistics Canada (StatCan) data shows the unemployment rate hit a 7-month high in April. That’s unlikely to surprise those who anticipate layoffs as a result of the trade war. However, with a layoff rate consistent with the average in the 201...

05/22/2026

Gooood Moooorning, TO!

New data suggests Canada’s SMB labour market remains mixed, with wages continuing to outpace inflation even as overall employment softens.

📌 Key highlights:
🔹SMB wages rose 4.2% YoY in April, above inflation at 2.4%
🔹Overall SMB employment declined 0.9%
🔹Retail, hospitality, and tourism employment rose 3.8%, while wages in those sectors jumped 10.6%
🔹Casual employment increased 12.7%, pointing to growing reliance on flexible staffing models
🔹ON employment softened (-1.8%) even as wages continued to rise (+3.3%)

The data points to a more selective and regionally uneven hiring environment as businesses prepare for the summer season. Details here 👉️🔗https://buff.ly/6hTQnBm

Wages continue to climb in certain provinces, even as overall employment dips: survey