Canada lost a staggering 1 million positions in March and the unemployment rate climbed to 7.8 per cent, reflecting the first wave of layoffs resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The March job losses easily surpassed a record one-month decline set in January of 2009 -- when employment dropped by roughly 125,000 -- according to Labour Force Survey data from Statistics Canada that dates back to 1976. March also saw the largest one-month increase of the country’s jobless rate, which had been 5.6 per cent in February. Record-setting job losses were widely anticipated in Thursday’s report. Statscan surveyed households on ... (full story)