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June 27, 2025JAPAN LABOUR FORCE SURVEY, MAY 2025 
Japan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged at 2.5% in May 2025. Compared with the previous month, Japan's labour force expanded by 0.4% and employment increased by 0.5%.
Japan's unemployment rate has been stable since 2022, as movements in labour force and employment have been very similar. In recent months, there was a slight decline in both labour force and employment, but this has been entirely reversed by the May increases for each variable.
In contrast, Nova Scotia has experienced faster growth in both labour force and employment. Nova Scotia's labour force and employment have been more volatile in recent months, but employment have matched or exceeded labour force growth. Canada's labour force and employment growth have also outpaced the same variables in Japan. However, Canada's labour force growth has continued while employment growth has stalled, resulting in a national unemployment rate that has risen above the Nova Scotia unemployment rate.
Sources: Statistics Bureau of Japan. Table: 1-a-1 (Seasonally adjusted) Major items (Labour force, Employed person, Employee, Unemployed person, Not in labour force, Unemployment rate (since Jan.1953); Statistics Canada. Table 14-10-0287-01 Labour force characteristics, monthly, seasonally adjusted and trend-cycle
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