The Financial Post reports in its Saturday edition that a Canadian government program that aims to minimize layoffs by providing benefits to workers who agree to work fewer hours has seen its uptake double in about half a year. A Bloomberg dispatch to the Post says that as of June 8, there were 799 so-called work-sharing agreements with employers in Canada, up from 399 in November. Over 27,000 Canadian workers are currently participating in the arrangements, which require sign-on from the federal government, employers, employees and unions if applicable. That is a 75-per-cent increase since November. In March, the federal government made changes that allowed Canadian firms to apply for or extend an existing work-sharing program if they were "experiencing a decline in business activity attributable to the threat or potential realization of tariffs." The data may help explain why the country's job market has not been harder hit amid U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs. The program allows firms to keep workers on their payroll at reduced hours while the government provides income support. ADF Group said that out of its more than 500 workers, about 200 currently work only two days a week under a work-sharing program.