The weak June jobless report followed a surge in May, when the country’s jobless rate fell 0.3 percentage points to 6.1% — its lowest level since December 1974 — as the economy churned out a stunning 96,700 new jobs.

In June, full-time employment dropped by roughly 67,100 positions, while the number of people working part-time increased by 62,500.

While gains were made in employment in health care and social assistance in June, the construction sector saw a pullback.

Employment increased by an estimated 41,000 in health care and social assistance in June, mostly in Ontario and Quebec.

Construction was down 19,000 jobs in June. After strong growth in the preceding two years, employment in this industry is now virtually unchanged from the start of 2006, Statistics Canada said.

While Alberta continued to lead the country with the lowest provincial unemployment rate of 3.5%, the jobless rate in both British Columbia and Manitoba fell to a record low in June. The exit of people from the labour market in B.C. and Manitoba pushed their unemployment rates to 4.3% and 3.6%, respectively.