Employment in Newfoundland and Labrador was 256,700 persons in August 2026, an increase of 3,000 persons, or 1.2%, compared with August 2025. Actual hours worked increased by 4.5% and the level of unemployment decreased by 5,800 persons, or 21.4%. The unemployment rate decreased by 1.9 percentage points to 7.7% in August 2026 compared with August 2025, remaining low by historical standards.
The labour force in Newfoundland and Labrador was 278,000 in August 2026. This represented a decrease of 2,900 persons, or 1.0%, compared with August 2025 and was largely due to a decline in the participation rate. The participation rate decreased by 1.1 percentage points to 58.5%, while the source population increased by 3,700 persons, or 0.8%.
There was a decrease in part-time employment (-2,200 persons, or -6.4%), while full-time employment increased (+5,200 persons, or +2.4%) in August 2026 compared with August 2025. On a gender basis, employment increased by 600 persons (or +0.5%) for the ‘Men+’ category and by 2,400 persons (or +2.0%) for the ‘Women+’ category.
On an industry basis, employment in the services-producing sector increased by 1,200 persons (+0.6%) in August 2026 compared with August 2025, and employment in the goods-producing sector increased by 1,800 persons (+3.6%). Within the services-producing sector, the largest employment increases were in ‘Accommodation and food services’ (+1,500 persons) and ‘Wholesale and retail trade’ (+1,000 persons). The largest employment declines were recorded in ‘Business, building and other support services’ (-2,200 persons) and ‘Educational services’ (-1,000 persons). Within the goods-producing sector, the largest employment increases were recorded in ‘Forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas’ (+1,000 persons) and ‘Construction’ (+600 persons). Employment declined only in ‘Manufacturing’ (-300 persons).
Employment increased in nine provinces in August 2026 compared with August 2025, with gains ranging from 0.3% in Saskatchewan to 3.4% in both Alberta and Nova Scotia. Employment declined only in Québec by 1.2% in August 2026, compared with August 2025.
On a year-to-date basis, employment in the province averaged 245,400 in the January to August 2026 period, remaining virtually unchanged compared with the same period in 2025. There was an increase in year-to-date employment in seven provinces over the same period, ranging from 0.4% in Saskatchewan to 3.5% in Alberta. Nationally, year-to-date employment increased by 0.5%. The unemployment rate in Newfoundland and Labrador averaged 9.5% on a year-to-date basis, a decrease of 1.0 percentage point compared with the January to August 2025 period.
| Labour Force Characteristics | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newfoundland and Labrador | ||||||
|
Indicator
|
Aug 2025
|
Aug 2026
|
Change
|
Jan-Aug 2025
|
Jan-Aug 2026
|
Change
|
| Labour Force (000s) | 280.9 | 278.0 | -1.0% | 274.0 | 271.2 | -1.0% |
| Employment (000s) | 253.7 | 256.7 | 1.2% | 245.3 | 245.4 | 0.0% |
| Unemployment (000s) | 27.1 | 21.3 | -21.4% | 28.6 | 25.7 | -10.1% |
| Unemployment Rate (%) | 9.6 | 7.7 | -1.9 ppts | 10.4 | 9.5 | -1.0 ppts |
| Participation Rate (%) | 59.6 | 58.5 | -1.1 ppts | 58.2 | 57.2 | -1.0 ppts |
| Employment Rate (%) | 53.8 | 54.0 | 0.2 ppts | 52.1 | 51.8 | -0.3 ppts |
| ppts: percentage point change Percent and actual changes based on unrounded monthly averages Source: Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey; Economics Division, Department of Finance |
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Glossary terms:
Labour Force | Employed | Unemployed | Unemployment Rate | Participation Rate | Employment Rate
Statistical Reference: Statistics used in this analysis were current at the time of writing. For the latest in employment statistics visit the Newfoundland & Labrador Statistics Agency site and the release dates on the Statistics Canada site.