Households in Gilkson earn more than those in 81% of Canadian towns
Workers in Gilkson spend 27.9 minutes on the way to work on average (26 in the middle of Canadian towns). Jobs were held by 71% of people aged 15 to 64 in Gilkson in 2021, next to 73% for the middle of Canadian towns. 13% of the labour force in Gilkson was out of work at the 2021 census, against 9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns.
Jobs and income in Gilkson: what the figures say
Work near the middle
At the 2021 census 71% of the 15-to-64s were in work (73% in the middle of Canadian towns); across all ages 15 and over, 52%. In work ↓
Unemployment near the middle
Census day in 2021 put 13% out of work (9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns), and the area’s monthly survey gave 7.6% in October 2026. Unemployment ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
Gilkson earns C+ for jobs and income
Better than 41% of Canadian towns on three measures together, #402 of 866 in Ontario.
Its strongest measure is household income; its weakest, trip times.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
In and out of work in Gilkson
Of the 105 other places of 2,500 people or more in the Hamilton census division, 70 have a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
Working or looking, 60% of everyone 15 and over was in the labour force. Across all ages 15 and over the share in work falls to 52%: many residents are past working age. The Labour Force Survey’s employment rate for the wider area was 61% in October 2026. The figures are a snapshot of 11 May 2021, when pandemic rules still kept many people out of work or at home.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
The median household in Gilkson had $95,600 in 2020
The middle of Ontario’s towns is $91,600, and Gilkson is 4% above it. Of the 105 other places of 2,500 or more in the Hamilton census division, 47 have a higher median. The year is 2020: emergency benefits like CERB count in these incomes, and they raised the bottom of the range.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
Walking, cycling or transit: 5.8% of Gilkson’s commuters
Driving takes 89% of commuters to work; the middle of Ontario’s towns has 88%. Fewer worked at home than in the middle of Canadian towns: 17% against 21%.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
38% more people are on EI in the Hamilton census division than in 2019
At its peak, in January 2021, 30,560 people were on EI, 3.3 times the 2019 average. For each 100 residents of working age in the division, about 4.1 are on EI. In the twelve months to August 2026 the number rose by 1%.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. Data for EI beneficiaries covers the Hamilton census division. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100).
Everyday places on foot in Gilkson: A−
Better than 83% of Canadian towns on two measures together, #469 of 866 in Ontario.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
Gilkson next to Canadian towns of 2,500 to 4,000: 333rd of 578 on jobs and income
| # | Place | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Mount Royal Alberta | 2,758 | 83% | 12% | $188K | A+ |
| 2 | Central River Heights Manitoba | 2,736 | 84% | 5.4% | $137K | A+ |
| 3 | Crescentwood Manitoba | 3,060 | 87% | 5% | $123K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 23 | McDougall Ontario | 3,002 | 82% | 9.6% | $93K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 33 | Adelaide-Metcalfe Ontario | 3,196 | 86% | 5.9% | $107K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 35 | Enniskillen Ontario | 3,174 | 82% | 5.2% | $105K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 331 | Kensington Alberta | 3,697 | 64% | 14% | $83K | C+ |
| 332 | Bifrost-Riverton Manitoba | 3,518 | 73% | 6.1% | $69K | C+ |
| 333 | Gilkson Ontario | 2,963 | 71% | 13% | $96K | C+ |
| 334 | Talbot-Grey Manitoba | 2,756 | 76% | 10% | $68K | C+ |
| 335 | Carpenter Ontario | 2,941 | 63% | 9.6% | $122K | C+ |
| … | ||||||
| 578 | Division No. 8, Subdivision L Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,724 | 43% | 30% | $51K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the places either side of Gilkson, and others among Ontario’s towns.
Jobs and income in the places around Gilkson
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gilkson | 71% | 13% | $96K | 27.9 min | C+ | A− |
| Falkirk East 0.8 km | 74% | 12% | $123K | 26.9 min | B | A− |
| Gurnett 0.8 km | 69% | 12% | $108K | 28.5 min | C+ | A− |
| Gilbert 1 km | 60% | 17% | $88K | 26.3 min | C | A |
| Gourley 1.2 km | 67% | 13% | $117K | 24.8 min | B− | A− |
| Fessenden 1.2 km | 70% | 12% | $88K | 26.3 min | C+ | A |
| Lampman 1.6 km | 65% | 13% | $129K | 30.2 min | C | B |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for Gilkson, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- Employment Insurance. A monthly count of Employment Insurance beneficiaries for the whole census division. It tracks the local job market, but it is not an unemployment rate.
- The Labour Force Survey. A monthly household survey by Statistics Canada, reported for metro areas and economic regions only. It supplies a recent rate next to the 2021 census figure.
- In work. Everyone with a job, whatever their age, divided by the residents aged 15 to 64 at the 2021 Census: below the municipality the census doesn’t split work by age, and this is the one rate every town and neighbourhood can be given.
- Unemployment. The share of people 15 and over in the labour force, working or looking for work, who had no job on census day in May 2021.
- Household income. Before-tax total income of the middle household for 2020, from the census. Neighbourhood medians are worked out from bracket counts, since Statistics Canada publishes none of their own.
- Trip times. How long getting to work normally takes, averaged from the census’s time bands at their middles; expect it to read slightly high against the timed figure.
- Which towns we compare. Towns and city neighbourhoods of 2,500 people or more, never a whole city and never a First Nations reserve. Middles are medians.
- Neighbourhood figures. Commuting flows and Statistics Canada’s timed averages stop at the municipality, so Hamilton’s page carries them; Gilkson’s own figures sum its dissemination areas.
Questions about work in Gilkson
What is the average household income in Gilkson?
At $95,600 before tax in 2020, the median household in Gilkson compares with $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns.
How do people in Gilkson get to work?
By car: 89% of commuters, 5.8% take public transit; on census day 17% of those in work worked from home.
How many jobs are there in Gilkson?
The census places jobs by municipality, so the answer is in Hamilton’s figures, with the flows of its commuters.
What is the unemployment rate in Gilkson?
The census put unemployment at 13% in May 2021, where the middle of Canadian towns was 9.9%. More recently, in October 2026, the Labour Force Survey had the Hamilton metro area at 7.6%.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (14-10-0459, 14-10-0462) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: TownRatings. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).