The minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour () was the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who was responsible for Employment and Social Development Canada, the Government of Canada department that oversees programs such as employment insurance, the Canada pension plan, old age security, and Canada student loans. On March 14, 2025, the position was abolished, its responsibilities being consolidated into the new position of Minister of Jobs and Families.

History The ministerial responsibility for employment has its origins in the October 1, 1966 cabinet reshuffle, when Jean Marchand's portfolio was renamed from Minister of Immigration and Citizenship to Minister of Manpower and Immigration, Along with this change, minister Marchand was tasked by Prime Minister Lester Pearson to draft a White paper to renew Canada's immigration policy. Pearson wanted to removed all discriminatory clauses remaining in Canada's immigration regulations, and instead facilitate the immigration of qualified workers from Asia.

The following year, Canada introduced its first point system to rank potential immigrants for eligibility. It originally consisted of 9 categories: education, occupation, professional skills, age, arranged employment, knowledge of English and/or French, relatives in Canada and "personal characteristics". To qualify for immigration 50 points out of 100 were necessary in 1967.Gogia, N., and Slade, B. (2011), About Canada: Immigration, Fernwood Pub, Halifax, NS

In 1977, the portfolio was renamed Minister of Employment and Immigration, a move that reflected the importance of attracting and retaining economic immigrants for Canadian governments in the 1980s and 1990s.

On 12 July 1996, the office of the Minister of Employment and Immigration was abolished and replaced with the office of Minister of Human Resources Development. The portfolio for immigration was transferred to the office of Minister of Citizenship and Immigration following the reorganization of the government and formation of the department for Citizenship and Immigration Canada."Employment and Immigration (1977-08-15 - 1996-07-11)." ParlInfo. Ottawa: Library of Parliament. Retrieved 2020 October 30."Order Transferring to the Department of Employment and Immigration...and Transferring to the Minister of Employment and Immigration...and Combining the Department of Employment and Immigration and the Department of Labour Under the Minister of Employment and Immigration.""Canada. Employment and Immigration Canada (Department)." Library of Congress.

On February 6, 2006, Prime Minister Stephen Harper transferred the responsibilities of the Minister of Social Development into this portfolio. Although the legislated names did not change, in accordance with this amalgamation the Minister was for a while styled the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development and the department operated as Human Resources and Social Development Canada. This ceased on October 30, 2008, and the name returned to the legislated one.

In 2015, the Employment portfolio was merged into the expanded ministry of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour."Here are all 30 cabinet ministers at a glance".The Ottawa Citizen , November 11, 2015

In 2019, following the 2019 Canadian federal election, the portfolio was split between the Minister of Labour and Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, with Carla Qualtrough being appointed the new minister on November 20.

In 2023, the Official Languages portfolio was merged into the expanded ministry of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages, with Randy Boissonnault being appointed the new minister on July 26, 2023.

In 2024, responsibility for labour was folded back into the portfolio while responsibility for official languages was split off; consequently, the position reverted to its former title of Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour, with incumbent Labour minister Steven MacKinnon being appointed to the post. The position was abolished the following year and its responsibilities consolidated into the new position of Minister of Jobs and Families, with MacKinnon becoming its inaugural holder.

List of ministers

No.PortraitNameTerm of officePolitical partyMinistryMinister of Manpower and Immigration1Jean MarchandOctober 1, 1966April 20, 1968Liberal19 (Pearson)April 20, 1968July 5, 196820 (P. E. Trudeau) 2Allan MacEachenJuly 5, 1968September 23, 1970 3Otto LangSeptember 24, 1970January 27, 1972 4Bryce MackaseyJanuary 28, 1972November 26, 1972 5Bob AndrasNovember 27, 1972September 13, 1976 6Bud CullenSeptember 14, 1976August 14, 1977Minister of Employment and Immigration (6)Bud CullenAugust 15, 1977June 3, 1979Liberal20 (P. E. Trudeau) 7Ron AtkeyJune 4, 1979March 2, 1980Progressive Conservative21 (Clark) 8Lloyd AxworthyMarch 3, 1980August 11, 1983Liberal22 (P. E. Trudeau)9John RobertsAugust 12, 1983June 29, 1984June 30, 1984September 16, 198423 (Turner) 10Flora MacDonaldSeptember 17, 1984June 29, 1986Progressive Conservative24 (Mulroney) 11Benoît BouchardJune 30, 1986March 30, 1988 12Barbara McDougallMarch 31, 1988April 20, 1991 13Bernard ValcourtApril 21, 1991June 24, 1993June 25, 1993November 3, 199325 (Campbell) (8)Lloyd Axworthy (second time)November 4, 1993January 24, 1996Liberal26 (Chrétien) 14Doug YoungJanuary 25, 1996July 11, 1996Minister of Human Resources Development (14)Doug YoungJuly 12, 1996October 3, 1996Liberal26 (Chrétien) 15Pierre PettigrewOctober 4, 1996August 2, 1999 16Jane StewartAugust 3, 1999December 11, 2003Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development 17Joe VolpeDecember 12, 2003January 14, 2005Liberal27 (Martin) 18Lucienne RobillardJanuary 14, 2005May 17, 2005Liberal 19Belinda StronachMay 17, 2005February 5, 2006LiberalMinister of Human Resources and Social Development20Diane FinleyFebruary 6, 2006January 3, 2007Conservative28 (Harper)21Monte SolbergJanuary 4, 2007October 29, 2008ConservativeMinister of Human Resources and Skills Development(20)Diane FinleyOctober 30, 2008July 15, 2013Conservative28 (Harper)Minister of Employment and Social Development22Jason KenneyJuly 15, 2013February 9, 2015Conservative28 (Harper)23Pierre PoilievreFebruary 9, 2015November 4, 2015ConservativeMinister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour 24 MaryAnn Mihychuk November 4, 2015 January 10, 2017 Liberal29 (J. Trudeau) 25 Patty Hajdu"Justin Trudeau adds fresh faces in cabinet shuffle". Maclean's, Joan Bryden, Jan 10, 2017 January 10, 2017 November 20, 2019 LiberalMinister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion 26Carla QualtroughNovember 20, 2019July 26, 2023Liberal29 (J. Trudeau)Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages27Randy BoissonnaultJuly 26, 2023November 20, 2024Liberal29 (J. Trudeau)28Ginette Petitpas TaylorNovember 20, 2024December 20, 2024Liberal29 (J. Trudeau)Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour29Steven MacKinnonDecember 20, 2024IncumbentLiberal29 (J. Trudeau)Position discontinued, replaced by the Minister of Jobs and Families

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Further reading