Canada’s Labour Market Is Swinging

CPG Kacell
37 minutes ago
2 min read

The Canadian job market in late 2025 has been anything but predictable.One quarter brings layoffs and uncertainty — the next, surprising job growth. This labour volatility is testing how businesses hire, retain, and plan their workforce.

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A Market in Motion

In August 2025, unemployment jumped to 7.1%, Canada’s highest rate in two years. Analysts blamed global tariffs, slowed exports, and cautious business investment. But by October, the trend flipped, full-time employment rebounded sharply, and hiring activity increased in key sectors like healthcare, logistics, and professional services.

This volatility reflects the broader North American economy: periods of cooling followed by bursts of recovery. It’s not instability, it’s a transformation.

What’s Causing the Swings

Trade tensions: Ongoing U.S.-Canada tariff issues have slowed manufacturing confidence.
AI adoption: Companies automating too quickly are restructuring roles before new positions are fully defined.
Sectoral gaps: Healthcare, skilled trades, and tech continue to face talent shortages, while administrative and retail jobs decline.

How Employers Can Adapt

Build internal flexibility: Cross-train employees to handle shifting demand.
Hire for adaptability: Look beyond résumés — problem-solving and resilience now matter more than tenure.
Focus on values-based recruitment: Cultural alignment helps teams weather economic cycles.
Plan for retention: It’s cheaper to keep skilled people than to constantly recruit new ones during market swings.

What This Means for Recruitment Agencies

Recruitment in volatile markets isn’t about speed, it’s about foresight. At CPG, we help employers anticipate shifts, not just react to them. When job markets swing, the companies that win are the ones hiring strategically and aligning talent with long-term growth, not short-term gaps.

Labour volatility may be the new normal, but with the right recruitment strategy, your workforce can remain steady, skilled, and ready for what’s next.