Regional labour market shows unemployment rate fell this summer

By: Colin Carmichael

The Stratford-Bruce Peninsula unemployment rate fell to 5.0 per cent in July, down from 5.6 per cent in June and 5.9 per cent in May.

While the lower rate is generally positive, the underlying numbers show a more complicated regional labour market.

Total employment was essentially unchanged in July at approximately 168,000 people. The larger movement came from a decline in the size of the labour force, meaning the lower unemployment rate was driven more by fewer people actively participating in the labour market than by a significant increase in hiring.

There was also continued movement in the type of employment. Full-time employment increased by about 1,400 in July, while part-time employment declined by about 1,600.

Looking back over the past year provides important context. Compared with July 2025, approximately 3,200 more people are employed across the Stratford-Bruce Peninsula economic region, including about 7,000 more people working full-time.

At the same time, the unemployment rate is higher than the 4.1 per cent recorded last July. That does not mean the region has lost jobs. Rather, the labour force has grown faster than employment over the past year, leaving more people looking for work even as the total number of people employed has increased.

The July figures point to a regional labour market that has become somewhat less tight than it was a year ago, but they do not indicate broad-based employment losses.

The data are drawn from Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey, with local labour market reporting and analysis from the Four County Labour Market Planning Board, a member of the Huron Chamber of Commerce.

A more detailed analysis of the local labour market, including sector-specific trends and additional context from the past year, is available exclusively to members of the Huron Chamber of Commerce. If you are not currently a member and would like to receive this analysis along with other Chamber member benefits, you can join the Huron Chamber for as little as $220 per year.

Colin Carmichael is the Executive Director of the Huron Chamber of Commerce