Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment in Canada
Canada: Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment was 4.57 million in 2026. ▲ Rising
Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment in Canada, 1966–2026
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Analysis
Canada recorded 4.57 million for economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in 2026. That is the highest value across all 61 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and up 30.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in Canada peaked at 4.57 million in 2026 and was at its lowest, 1.44 million, in 1966.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment in Canada, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | 1.44 million | — |
| 1967 | 1.51 million | +5.2% |
| 1968 | 1.61 million | +6.5% |
| 1969 | 1.71 million | +6.0% |
| 1970 | 1.79 million | +4.6% |
| 1971 | 1.91 million | +6.9% |
| 1972 | 1.96 million | +2.7% |
| 1973 | 2.03 million | +3.5% |
| 1974 | 2.11 million | +4.1% |
| 1975 | 2.28 million | +7.9% |
| 1976 | 2.31 million | +1.2% |
| 1977 | 2.36 million | +2.5% |
| 1978 | 2.39 million | +1.3% |
| 1979 | 2.39 million | -0.2% |
| 1980 | 2.46 million | +3.1% |
| 1981 | 2.51 million | +1.8% |
| 1982 | 2.49 million | -0.7% |
| 1983 | 2.53 million | +1.7% |
| 1984 | 2.54 million | +0.4% |
| 1985 | 2.55 million | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 2.60 million | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 2.63 million | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 2.68 million | +2.1% |
| 1989 | 2.71 million | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 2.75 million | +1.8% |
| 1991 | 2.78 million | +1.0% |
| 1992 | 2.81 million | +1.2% |
| 1993 | 2.81 million | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 2.79 million | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 2.75 million | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 2.70 million | -2.0% |
| 1997 | 2.65 million | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 2.65 million | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 2.70 million | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 2.80 million | +3.5% |
| 2001 | 2.84 million | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 2.90 million | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 2.94 million | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 3.04 million | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 3.11 million | +2.4% |
| 2006 | 3.14 million | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 3.21 million | +2.3% |
| 2008 | 3.29 million | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 3.35 million | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 3.40 million | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 3.40 million | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 3.41 million | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 3.45 million | +1.2% |
| 2014 | 3.46 million | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 3.51 million | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 3.51 million | -0.0% |
| 2017 | 3.58 million | +1.9% |
| 2018 | 3.66 million | +2.1% |
| 2019 | 3.73 million | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 3.73 million | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 4.03 million | +8.1% |
| 2022 | 4.21 million | +4.3% |
| 2023 | 4.30 million | +2.3% |
| 2024 | 4.46 million | +3.6% |
| 2025 | 4.53 million | +1.6% |
| 2026 | 4.57 million | +0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.57 million | 1.44 million | 1.71 million | 4 |
| 1970s | 2.15 million | 1.79 million | 2.39 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.57 million | 2.46 million | 2.71 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.74 million | 2.65 million | 2.81 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.06 million | 2.80 million | 3.35 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.51 million | 3.40 million | 3.73 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.26 million | 3.73 million | 4.57 million | 7 |
Countries ranked near Canada
- 1 United States of America 23.75 million compare
- 2 Poland 2.55 million compare
- 2 France 6.42 million compare
- 3 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 6.07 million compare
- 3 Netherlands 1.29 million compare
- 4 Lithuania 312,746 compare
- 5 Estonia 166,734 compare
- 5 Japan 4.22 million compare
- 6 Italy 3.63 million compare
- 7 Spain 3.39 million compare
More economy & growth data for Canada
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 0.8812 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.66 Percent per annum (2029)
- Manufacturing, value added (constant LCU), per capita 5,089 constant LCU per person (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), annual 16.22 % change on previous year (2022)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), per 0.2735 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), per 15,452 current US$ per person (2022)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), annual 20.64 % change on previous year (2022)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), per 0.356 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), per 20,112 current LCU per person (2022)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 1.31 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in Canada?
- Economic outlook no 117 — general government employment in Canada was 4.57 million in 2026, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest economic outlook no 117 — general government employment recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 4.57 million in 2026.
- What is the lowest economic outlook no 117 — general government employment recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.44 million in 1966.
- How does Canada rank for economic outlook no 117 — general government employment?
- Canada ranks 4th out of 17 countries with data for 2026.
- Is economic outlook no 117 — general government employment rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 30.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Economic Outlook No 117 — General government employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The OECD Economic Outlook presents the OECD’s analysis of the major global economic trends and prospects for the next two years. The Outlook puts forward a consistent set of projections for output, employment, government spending, prices and current balances based on a review of each member country and of the induced effect on each of them on international developments. OECD (2025), OECD Economic Outlook No 117 (Edition 2025/1) EO117 Database documentation EO117 Last historical points gdp inflation cpi population unemployment real gdp gdp per capita employment OECD Economic Outlook website: https://www.oecd.org/economic-outlook/ Contact : eco.outlook@oecd.org Keywords : Outlook, forecasts, forecast, GDP