London-St. Thomas May jobless rate up 1.5 percentage points to 9.7% The new system, called Employment Ontario, is set to take effect in nine new areas next year, and in additional areas after that.The government says a prototype version has already been in place in three regions — Peel, Hamilton-Niagara and Muskoka-Kawarthas — since last year.Ontario’s unemployment rate has risen to 9.3 per cent as of last month, up from the pre-pandemic rate of 5.5 per cent, according to the province.