Ontario sheds 93,800 construction jobs

May 13, 2020

The Canadian economy lost nearly two million jobs in April for a total of more than three million since February. A further 2.5 million people are employed but working fewer than half their usual hours since February.
Ontario’s construction industry has been among the worst hit sectors, shedding 93,800 jobs in April and nearly 5,000 in March
In all, Canada’s most populous province lost 689,200 jobs during the month of April, according to Statistics Canada's latest national labour survey.
Ontario has now shed 1,092,000 jobs since February—the last month before restrictive measures to slow the spread of the pandemic battered Canada's economy.
Ontario's unemployment rate also climbed to 11.3 per cent compared to 5.5 per cent in February, though Statistics Canada warns the current unemployment rate understates the true scope of the crisis since many people are no longer actively looking for work.
Statistics Canada says the April report is the first of its monthly labour surveys to properly capture the impact of the virus.
"The magnitude of the decline in employment since February far exceeds declines observed in previous labour market downturns," said the agency in its report, pointing to the 1981-82 recession in which Canada lost 612,000 jobs over nearly a year and a half.