In January 2026, average weekly earnings for Canadian non-farm payroll employees increased 2% year over year to C$1,320.46, edging up from a 1.9% gain in December. The strongest year-over-year growth by industry was recorded in management of companies and enterprises (6.5%), transportation and warehousing (5.8%), professional, scientific and technical services (5.0%), mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (4.4%), and public administration (4.2%). In contrast, earnings declined in finance and insurance (-11.4%) and wholesale trade (-1.6%).
Across provinces and territories, Nunavut posted the largest increase in average weekly earnings (9.0%), followed by Prince Edward Island (5.1%), Nova Scotia (4.4%), and New Brunswick (4.4%). Average weekly hours worked remained unchanged at 33.1 hours, both compared with the previous month and with January 2025. On a month-over-month basis, average weekly earnings were little changed in January.
