Women in Canada were employed in record numbers last year, according to figures in the latest national jobs survey, with a notable participation increase among women with young children.

Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey, published Friday, states 81 per cent of women aged 25 to 54 were employed on average over the course of 2022 – the highest annual rate on record since 1976.

The workforce participation rate for women was 1.3 percentage points higher than what was reported in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic set in and brought with it fears of a “she-cession” as women lost their jobs in high numbers.

There was a bigger jump in employment participation last year among mothers with children under the age of six. In 2022, 75.2 per cent of core working-age women with young kids were working, an increase of 3.3 percentage points from 2019.

The study also noted more workforce participation among new female immigrants. In 2022, women who came to Canada in the last five years had an employment rate of 69.3 per cent, nearly 10 percentage points above the level reported in 2019.