Government of Nova Scotia, Canada

Home > Economics and Statistics > Archived Daily Stats
The Economics and Statistics Division maintains archives of previous publications for accountability purposes, but makes no updates to keep these documents current with the latest data revisions from Statistics Canada. As a result, information in older documents may not be accurate. Please exercise caution when referring to older documents. For the latest information and historical data, please contact the individual listed to the right.

<--- Return to Archive

For additional information relating to this article, please contact:

Thomas StorringDirector – Economics and Statistics
Tel: 902-424-2410Email: thomas.storring@novascotia.ca

April 07, 2026
US EMPLOYMENT, MARCH 2026

Monthly change (March 2026 vs February 2026, seasonally adjusted)

US non-farm payroll employment increased 178,000 in March 2026, rising to 158.6 million persons.

The increase of 178,000 in US nonfarm payroll employment follows the revised decline of 133,000 reported for February 2026.

The US unemployment rate edged down 0.1 percentage point to 4.3% in March 2026. The US unemployment rate has remained at or above 4% since May 2024.

The US participation rate edged down 0.1 percentage point to 61.9% in March 2026. The US participation rate had stabilized below levels observed prior to the pandemic and has declined slightly in recent months.

The US employment to population ratio edged down 0.1 percentage point to 59.2% in March 2026. As with the participation rate, the US employment rate remains below pre-pandemic levels and has declined slightly since mid-2023.

Note: Data for October 2025 were not collected due to the federal government shutdown.

Note: Canadian and US labour force statistics refer to different working-age cohorts.   

Statistics Canada's Labour Force Survey results for March 2026 will be released on April 10, 2026.  

Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics retrieved from Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; Statistics Canada. Table  14-10-0287-01   Labour force characteristics, monthly, seasonally adjusted and trend-cycle



<--- Return to Archive