Canada shed 68,000 jobs in September, driving the unemployment rate up to 6.5 per cent from 6.4 per cent the month before.

The job losses were split evenly between full-time (35,000 positions lost) and part-time (33,000 positions lost) employment, according to the latest Labour Force Survey published by Statistics Canada on Friday.

Most of the job losses were reported in the educational services sector, which lost 35,000 jobs or a decrease of 2.2 per cent month over month in September. Employment in the health care and assistance sector also dipped by 23,000 jobs or 0.8 per cent month over month, while the manufacturing sector lost 13,000 jobs.

Agriculture, professional services and accommodation and food services were among the sectors to see an increase in employment.

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September marks the second consecutive month of overall employment declines, after the economy added 181,000 jobs from April to July.

On a year-over-year basis, employment was up by 95,000 jobs or 0.5 per cent in September.

More to come …