Québec loses 49,000 jobs in September; unemployment rises to 6.0%

Québec employment fell by 49,000, or 1.1%, in September, while the provincial unemployment rate rose 0.4 percentage points to 6.0%, Statistics Canada reported October 9.

The decline followed a loss of 19,000 jobs in August. From January through September, employment in Québec fell by 130,000, or 2.8%, and the unemployment rate rose 0.8 percentage points.

Nationally, employment decreased by 68,000 in September and the unemployment rate edged up to 6.5%. The employment rate fell 0.2 percentage points to 60.6%. Average hourly wages were 2.3% higher than a year earlier at $37.64.

Education services accounted for part of the national decline, with employment down 35,000 in the month. Compared with a year earlier, the sector had 27,000 fewer workers in Québec.

The Labour Force Survey is based on a sample and monthly estimates can be volatile. Statistics Canada advises looking at longer trends as well as a single month’s movement.

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, September 2026, released October 9, 2026.

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