Skip to Content Subscribe Our Offers My Account Manage My Subscriptions FAQ Newsletters Canada Canadian True Crime Canadian Politics Health World Israel & Middle East Financial Post NP Comment Longreads Puzzmo Diversions Comics NP News Quiz New York Times Crossword Horoscopes Life Eating & Drinking Style Sponsored Play for Ontario Travel Travel Canada Travel USA Travel International Cruises Travel Essentials Culture Books Celebrity Movies Music Theatre Television Business Essentials Advice Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Buy Canadian Home Living Outdoor Living Tech Style & Beauty Kitchen & Dining Personal Care Entertainment & Hobbies Gift Guide Travel Guide Deals Savings National Post Store More Sports Hockey Baseball Basketball Football Soccer Golf Tennis Driving Vehicle Research Reviews News Gear Guide Obituaries Place an Obituary Place an In Memoriam Classifieds Place an Ad Celebrations Working Business Ads Archives Healthing Epaper Manage Print Subscription Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ Newsletters Canada World Financial Post NP Comment Longreads Puzzmo Diversions Life Shopping Epaper Manage Print Subscription HomeNewsCanadaHere's which job sector pays the highest weekly wages in Canada — and the one that pays the leastCanadians in the highest paying sector earn an average of $1,970.15 a week more than those in the lowest paid industryLast updated 24 minutes ago You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.An oil and gas industry pumpjack drill rig in the Canadian Prairies in Alberta, Canada. laughingmangovideo - stock.adobeNew data from Statistics Canada has revealed the highest earning job sectors in the country according to average weekly wages for March 2026.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorThe findings, which use data from the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (SEPH), show that average wages are highest in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector, where employees earned an average of $2,509.13 per week in March 2026.This is a 3.7 per cent wage increase since March 2025, when average weekly earnings came in at $2,419.49 for this sector.Get a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of NP Posted will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againThe data notes Canadians evaluated in the findings worked an average of 33.4 hours per week in March 2026.Other top-paying sectors include utilities (which refers to electric, gas, and water companies) and information and cultural industries (such as motion picture, sound recording, telecommunications, broadcasting and publishing), both of which saw average weekly wages of more than $2,000 in March 2026.At the other end of the spectrum, the accommodation and food services sector saw the lowest average weekly wages at $538.98 per week — a 5.4 per cent increase on March 2025.The retail trade and arts, entertainment and recreation were the only other two sectors that saw employees earn less than $1,000 per week on average, at $773.39 and $791.10 respectively.The utilities sector has seen the biggest wage growth since March 2025, at 9.6 per cent, followed by information and cultural industries at 7 per cent.Three sectors saw average weekly wages decrease between March 2025 and March 2026: real estate, rental and leasing (-9.2 per cent), forestry, logging and support (-2.4 per cent) and management of companies and enterprises (0.8 per cent).This data was released on May 28, one day before StatCan reported that Canada had slipped into a technical recession.StatCan also looked at the monthly change in payroll employment for each sector — meaning the number of employees receiving pay and benefits from their employer.Of the 20 sectors listed, 11 saw payroll employment decrease from February to March 2026, though StatCan notes that the change was only statistically significant for seven of these: accommodation and food services, construction, retail, real estate, administrative and support services, forestry, logging and support, and ‘other services’ (which excludes public administration).Of the nine sectors that saw payroll employment increase, it was only statistically significant for management of companies and enterprises and public administration.Meanwhile, job vacancies in Canada held steady at 503,300 in March. Year over year, job vacancies were down by 3.2 per cent.Elsewhere, StatCan also looked at the average weekly earnings for Canadians by region.The findings showed that average wages across Canada reached $1,333 per week in March 2026, up by 3.5 per cent compared to March 2025. This follows 2.8 per cent year-over-year increase recorded in February.At the top of the list is Nunavut, where residents earned an average of $1,874.95 per week — an increase of 7.8 per cent year-over-year.This is followed by Northwest Territories ($1,741.07), Yukon ($1,520.39), Alberta ($1,371.07), Ontario ($1,368.71), British Columbia ($1,348.36), Newfoundland and Labrador ($1,290.53), Saskatchewan ($1,288.82), Quebec ($1,283.60), New Brunswick ($1,231.77), Manitoba ($1,214.49), and Nova Scotia ($1,210.83).At the bottom of the list is Prince Edward Island, where residents earned an average of $1,177.97 per week in March 2026 — an increase of 7.7 per cent compared to the same period in 2025, but nearly $700 less than Nunavut’s average.Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here. 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