Investing.com -- Canada’s labor market staged a powerful rebound in May as employment surged by 88,000 positions, snapping a four-month streak of losses. The unexpected burst of hiring easily outpaced the modest 10,000 gain projected by economists surveyed by Bloomberg.

The robust hiring drive was fueled entirely by full-time positions, which swelled by 154,000 and erased a downward trend seen earlier this year. Conversely, part-time employment fell by 66,000, underscoring a broader shift toward more permanent, full-time labor commitments.

As hiring accelerated across the country, the national unemployment rate dropped three-tenths of a percentage point to 6.6%. This marked a noticeable recovery from the 6.9% jobless rate logged just one month prior.

The drop in unemployment was widely shared, with the core-aged demographic of men and women both registering significant jobless declines. Younger workers aged 15 to 24 also saw notable improvements, with their unemployment rate falling nearly a full percentage point to 13.4%.

On an industry level, construction led the hiring charge by adding 27,000 new workers to its payrolls. Information, culture, and recreation followed closely behind with a gain of 19,000 positions, while the wholesale and retail trade sectors shed 35,000 jobs.

Regionally, Ontario drove the headline numbers by adding 42,000 positions, which pulled its provincial jobless rate down to 7.0%. British Columbia and Alberta also recorded healthy employment increases, while Saskatchewan bucked the national trend by cutting 6,100 jobs.

Wage growth cooled significantly during the month, with average hourly wages increasing by 3.0% on a year-over-year basis to reach $37.24. This deceleration follows a much hotter 4.5% annualized wage growth rate recorded in April.

Meanwhile, remote work arrangements continued their gradual post-pandemic decline across Canadian industries. The proportion of people working entirely outside the home rose to 78.8% in May, up from 77.6% during the same period last year.