Monthly Summary
April 2026
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is implementing nearly 350 job cuts while simultaneously hiring 1,000 border guards. The agency is undergoing a restructuring that involves both workforce reductions and targeted recruitment efforts.
Langara College is suspending enrolment in its journalism program indefinitely, with the current cohort of 20 students graduating in spring 2027 being the last. The program will reduce from seven instructors to three full-time instructors plus one or two part-time teachers.
The Waterloo Region District School Board has declared 119 teachers surplus, including 97 elementary and 22 secondary teachers, with contracts terminating at the end of the year. The layoffs are part of a provincial directive for conservative staffing due to changing enrolment projections.
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board has declared 29 elementary teachers surplus due to an end to rapid enrolment growth. The board has already recalled 10 affected teachers and remains optimistic about recalling most or all before the next school year.
Bestar Inc., a Quebec furniture maker owned by private equity firm Novacap, is shutting down its two factories in Quebec including the Lac-Mégantic plant and the Sherbrooke plant. Approximately 120 unionized workers in Lac-Mégantic will lose their jobs in addition to management employees, with a formal announcement expected on Thursday morning.
The Ottawa Hospital announced plans to eliminate 400 jobs across its three campuses as a regional trauma centre. The cuts are attributed to inadequate provincial funding despite the hospital having operated with a surplus the previous year.
Starbucks announced layoffs affecting 900 employees across the United States and Canada. The company also plans to close stores in both countries as part of this restructuring effort.
Cape Breton University is laying off 17 employees and impacting approximately 50 positions total through early retirements, non-renewed term positions, and unfilled vacancies. The cuts are accompanied by tuition increases and are driven by significant enrolment pressures and an expected $77 million loss in revenue over three years.
Oracle laid off between 20,000 and 30,000 employees globally, including Canada, despite strong financial performance with 22% revenue growth and cloud expansion. The layoffs affected employees across multiple regions including America, India, Canada, and Latin America, with reports indicating senior employees and long-tenured veterans were disproportionately impacted.
South Shore Furniture, a Quebec-based furniture maker founded in 1940, is closing all operations and laying off all 126 employees. The company cited a 77% drop in sales between 2022 and 2025 due to cheap Asian furniture flooding the market and American tariffs impacting cross-border sales.
The College of New Caledonia announced 80 layoffs representing an 11% workforce reduction following approval of the 2026-27 operating budget. The layoffs are accompanied by the closure of the Fort St. James campus and the cancellation and suspension of 26 programs.
Library and Archives Canada is eliminating 161 positions over three years, including 56 permanent employees, as part of the Carney government's public service spending review requiring up to 15 per cent operational budget cuts. The bulk of savings of $13.6 million will come from the access to information and privacy (ATIP) unit, though the organization is receiving a permanent $20 million annual funding injection to help address systemic access-to-information shortfalls.
The Immigrant Education Society in Calgary laid off more than 40 employees, mostly language instructors, in March 2026 due to a 15% federal budget cut. The organization also cut 26 language classes as of April 1 and plans to eliminate all higher-level classes beyond CLB 4 by September, affecting approximately 500 students.
Rogers Communications is offering buyouts to thousands of employees as part of cost-tightening measures. The company is using voluntary buyout packages to reduce its workforce. According to Rogers: 1) The offer is to 1/2 of the 25,000 total number of employees. Not 25,000. 2) Employees will not be forced to leave - optional program. 3) It's in response to reduced profitability across the telecom industry.
Lakeridge Health in Oshawa has cut approximately 40 jobs over the past year, including three full-time dietary aide positions that were not replaced last month. The layoffs have resulted in worsening working conditions, staff shortages, and increased workload for remaining employees at the healthcare facility.
Coast Wholesale Appliances Inc., a national appliance retailer with 300 employees across 17 showrooms and 9 distribution centres, has filed for creditor protection under the Creditors Arrangement Act. Staff at locations including the Kelowna store are being laid off as the company faces liquidation.
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance announced it will cut 49 positions, with half coming from reducing its float staff pool. The cuts will largely be accomplished through not filling vacancies.
London Health Sciences Centre is cutting nursing positions to align staffing levels with peer hospitals, with cuts totaling more than 200 positions. The reductions will occur through attrition over three years.
Northwest Territories school boards are warning of major layoffs affecting between 250 and 350 support workers across 49 N.W.T. schools due to the loss of $58 million in federal funding previously provided through Jordan's Principle. The cuts will impact education assistants, counsellors, social-emotional coaches, and cultural programming staff, with jobs predominantly held by Indigenous women outside of Yellowknife.
The RCMP plans to eliminate 63 employees and 13 executive positions at its national headquarters in Ottawa as part of the federal government's comprehensive expenditure review. Front-line RCMP officers and specialized civilian members hired under the RCMP Act are not eligible for the early retirement incentive program.
The CBSA plans to reduce its workforce by 330 employees and 18 executives through the federal comprehensive expenditure review. Front-line officers at the border and in operational roles are not eligible for the early retirement incentive program.
Agropur announced the closure of its dairy plant near Sussex, New Brunswick, with 60 job losses expected by the end of 2028. An additional 30 jobs will be lost at the company's ingredients plant in Truro, Nova Scotia, as part of a consolidation and modernization project.
Browns Bay Packing laid off more than 70 full-time employees as farmed salmon volumes fell due to federal aquaculture policy uncertainty. The company was also forced to cancel plans for a new seafood processing facility with local First Nations.
A Vancouver Park Board manager who successfully transformed a concession stand into a lively destination patio was laid off. The specific reasons for the layoff are not detailed in the available information.
13 teachers at East Three elementary and secondary schools in Inuvik have been laid off due to dried-up funding from Jordan's Principle. The school division is also eliminating its French immersion program next year.
Yahoo Finance Canada ceased operations, resulting in the layoff of the entire Canadian finance team. The Canadian team was an extension of Yahoo Finance's U.S. finance team and had been operating since 2018.
CPAC announced layoffs and cancellation of flagship programs including PrimeTime Politics and L'Essentiel due to accelerating revenue declines and subscriber erosion. The not-for-profit parliamentary affairs channel, funded by cable providers including Rogers, Videotron, Cogeco, Eastlink, and Access Communications, cited volatile conditions in the broadcasting landscape.
Prairie Harm Reduction, which operated Saskatoon's only supervised drug consumption site and provided support services to people living with addictions, closed entirely earlier in April 2026, resulting in more than 100 workers being laid off. The closure has led to increased pressure on emergency services and hospitals dealing with overdose-related calls.
The Hay River Public Library will close as of May 1, 2026, 'until further notice,' resulting in the layoff of library staff including one full-time librarian and seven part-time or casual employees. The closure follows the dissolution of the Hay River Library Committee, which oversees local library services, due to changes in territorial funding for the head librarian position.
The NWT Teachers' Association reported that 13 teachers have been laid off in Inuvik. The layoffs affect families in the community, as described by parent Zoila Castillo.
GeoComply, a Vancouver-headquartered gaming cybersecurity company, announced it is cutting 15% of its workforce (68 employees out of 450 total). The company frames the layoffs as a strategic evolution aimed at streamlining operations and incorporating AI to improve efficiencies.
Bird Canada temporarily paused e-scooter and e-bike rental operations in Windsor due to contract expiration and timing issues with the city agreement. The company temporarily laid off just over half of its 20 Windsor staff members during the service pause.
The N.W.T. territorial government laid off 13 teachers in Inuvik, affecting East Three elementary and secondary schools. The layoffs will take effect at the end of the 2025-2026 school year and are expected to impact student resources, supports, and programming.
Vancouver Island University eliminated more than 100 jobs across its campuses over two years as part of budget cuts, with 123 faculty members affected by workload reductions via layoffs or early retirements. The university also cancelled dozens of programs including its music program and Canada's third-largest geographic information systems (GIS) program.
JS Refrigeration has laid off one staff member hired for paperwork related to heat pump installations, with potential for additional layoffs. The layoffs result from the P.E.I. provincial government pausing its heat pump rebate program, which accounted for approximately 80% of the company's heat pump installation business.
The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada is cutting 53 jobs as part of Prime Minister Mark Carney's push to reduce government spending. The board, which has 2,450 full-time employees and is responsible for adjudicating asylum claims, currently has 295,522 outstanding cases awaiting decisions.
UKG, the HCM software company, is laying off approximately 950 employees globally as part of an ongoing transformation and workforce restructuring. The layoffs began April 15, 2026, with approximately 600 employees notified of immediate departure and another 350 asked to remain through August 31, 2026.
Sask Polytechnic announced 30 additional layoffs including 18 faculty, 9 professional services employees, and 3 out of scope staff. This comes on top of 150 employees laid off over the past year for a total of 180 job losses.
University Canada West laid off 240 of its more than 800 staff and faculty members at its downtown Vancouver campuses in a sweeping restructuring. The layoffs are attributed to government-imposed caps on international student enrolment, which have significantly impacted student recruitment at the private for-profit institution.
SAIT is cutting 30 permanent faculty positions due to declining international student enrollment following federal restrictions on international student permits. The institution is also pausing programs including peer mentorship, English language conversations, and student engagement initiatives.
The Simcoe County District School Board laid off 99 teachers across 67 full-time positions due to declining secondary school enrolment. Teachers from various fields including academic subjects, technology, and special education were affected.
Up to 50 education workers face layoffs at CSC Providence, an Ontario French Catholic school board. The union representing approximately 850 full- and part-time members between Windsor and Owen Sound was notified of the job cuts.
Canada Post announced that 136,000 addresses across 13 communities will lose door-to-door delivery and switch to community mailboxes starting late 2026 and early 2027, as part of a plan to convert 4 million addresses over five years. A 30 percent reduction in positions at delivery depots is expected, with most job losses occurring through attrition as employees retire rather than through layoffs.
According with a letter received on april 16 was because the current market conditions have affected Palliser and the demand for product.
Ultimate Kronos Group (UKG) is eliminating around 950 jobs as part of a restructuring initiative. Canadian employees, numbering over 580 staff, were notified of the workforce reduction on April 14, 2026.
General Motors laid off 500 workers from its Oshawa plant this year, with approximately 1,200 additional layoffs across feeder plants in the auto industry. The layoffs have contributed to Oshawa's shrinking auto sector and high unemployment rate of 7.9 percent.
Lassonde Industries announced 80 job cuts at its Sun-Rype plant in Kelowna, BC as it moves beverage packing operations to facilities in Calgary, Toronto, and Rougemont. The transition will occur in phases through December 2026, while apple processing and snack production will continue at the Kelowna location.
[Community report] Connor, Clark & Lunn. On April 16, Connor, Clark & Lunn Financial Group has laid off 8 or 9 people from their information systems department. It is not clear if the jobs are being moved to the India office or this is a cost-cutting effort to prepare the company for a sale. Connor, Clark & Lunn is among Canada's largest privately owned asset management firms offering a broad range of investment products and services. CC&L manages $188 billion (CAD) worth in assets.
Ubisoft Halifax, a studio with 71 employees, was shuttered in early January 2026. The closure occurred shortly after employees voted to unionize, though Ubisoft attributed the decision to wider cost-cutting measures.
7-Eleven is planning to shutter approximately 645 stores in Canada and the US in 2026, expected to result in deep job cuts as the convenience giant shifts to a 'wholesale fuel stores' business model. The company is simultaneously looking to open 205 new locations as part of this strategic transformation.
The hospital is laying off Personal Support Workers (PSWs) citing changing patient needs that increasingly require nursing care. The hospital plans to add nurses in acute care and ICU to replace the eliminated PSW roles.
The hospital is laying off Personal Support Workers (PSWs) citing changing patient needs that increasingly require nursing care. The hospital plans to add nurses in acute care and ICU to replace the eliminated PSW roles.
Snap is cutting its North American workforce by approximately 16% (roughly 1,000 full-time jobs) as part of an AI overhaul. The exact number of Canadian employees affected remains unclear, though the company has more than 140 workers in Canada.
George Brown Polytechnic is cutting jobs in a latest round of layoffs following the elimination of 51 roles in March 2026. The college cited financial pressures from changes to international student policies introduced by IRCC beginning in 2024 as the primary driver of the workforce reductions.
Health Canada announces up to 2,500 job cuts (approximately 15% of its workforce) as part of a federal budget-driven cost-reduction and digital transformation strategy. The layoffs will be phased beginning Fall 2026 and will impact pharmaceutical regulatory teams, epidemiology and surveillance units, and Indigenous health initiatives.
Woodbridge Foam's Blenheim plant is undergoing retooling to produce products for the housing industry, resulting in short-term or indefinite layoffs beginning in May 2026 and continuing through December. Up to 88 hourly and 8 salaried employees could be laid off from the 155-person workforce.
Federal funding reductions and limits on international student enrollment are impacting a post-secondary institution in southeastern Manitoba. As a result, approximately 10 per cent of staff at Providence University College and Theological Seminary in Otterburne—out of a workforce of about 115 employees—are facing layoffs.
The Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) is planning a restructuring ahead of the upcoming academic school year that will affect nearly 100 elementary school teachers. The layoffs are attributed to provincial funding not keeping pace with inflation, making staffing decisions more difficult.
Extendicare is eliminating approximately 21 employees at its Countryside long-term care home in Sudbury, Ontario. The workforce reduction will affect nurses, support aides, maintenance workers, and janitorial and housekeeping staff.
The Ottawa Hospital announced a 3% workforce reduction affecting management, non-union, support, executive, nursing and other health-care positions across its 13,281-employee organization. The hospital estimates more than 100 front-line staff, mainly nurses and personal support workers, will be affected based on union discussions.
CAE is cutting 2% of its workforce as aviation demand weakens. The company is shifting focus toward defense growth opportunities.
The Canada Water Agency will cut approximately 13 jobs as part of Prime Minister Mark Carney's federal budget cuts totaling $5 million. The agency, which leads ecosystem restoration and protection work in major freshwater ecosystems like the Great Lakes and Lake Winnipeg, will absorb the cuts over multiple fiscal years.
Meta is reportedly planning to eliminate around 200 roles in May 2026, following several hundred job cuts in March 2026. It remains unclear if any of Meta's 1,100+ Canadian employees will be affected by the May workforce reduction.
The Canadian federal government is offering an Early Retirement Incentive (ERI) program to approximately 68,000 federal public servants, allowing eligible employees to retire up to five years early without pension penalties. The $1.5 billion program over five years is part of a broader strategy to reduce the size of the federal public service, with applications due by July 24, 2026.
The Toronto District School Board announced the elimination of 40 vice-principal positions effective for the upcoming school year, resulting in some schools sharing vice-principals. The layoffs are attributed to declining enrollment (5,000 fewer students expected) and the end of pandemic-related one-time funding.
Canada Revenue Agency cutting 210 jobs in the coming months. Federal unions said that more than 450 members received notices on Tuesday that their jobs may be at risk.
The City of Vancouver entered into 79 severance agreements with non-union employees in 2025, marking a record surge—as many as the previous seven years combined and almost nine times the annual average. The municipality has refused to disclose the total dollar cost of these severance payouts, despite having released this information in previous years.