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Labour Market Monthly Update

The Labour Market Monthly Update offers a quick overview of B.C.'s labour market. You'll find industry and regional highlights, as well as information on provincial employment, unemployment and participation rates.

The latest monthly data is displayed below. If you would like to see data from previous months, please select a month from the dropdown.

Employment

Find out about B.C.'s employment trends by employment type, age and sex.

Total Employed (January 2024)
2,835,300
Source: Labour Force Survey (monthly, seasonally adjusted)
Employment Change
(since last month)
-2,600
Full Time
-19,600
Part Time
+17,000
% Employment Change
(from last month)
-0.1%
Full Time
-1.0%
Part Time
+3.0%
Source: Labour Force Survey (monthly, seasonally adjusted)
Employment by Age Group and Sex
January 2024 December 2023
Age
15 - 24 years 386,300 384,800
25 - 54 years 1,833,400 1,838,700
55+ years 615,600 613,500
Sex
Women 1,349,800 1,353,400
Men 1,485,500 1,483,600
Source: Labour Force Survey (monthly, seasonally adjusted)

Unemployment

Discover B.C.'s unemployment trends by rates of unemployment and participation.

Total Unemployed (January 2024)
162,500
Unemployment Rate
5.4%
Participation Rate
65.3%
Total Unemployed (December 2023)
167,600
Unemployment Rate
5.6%
Participation Rate
65.7%

Participation Rate represents the number of people in the workforce that are of working age as a percentage of total BC population.

Source: Labour Force Survey (monthly, seasonally adjusted)

Unemployment by Region

View the unemployment rates in each region of B.C.

Unemployment Rate
Map of BC Map of BC highlighting Cariboo region Map of BC highlighting Kootenay region Map of BC highlighting Mainland/Southwest region Map of BC highlighting North Coast and Nechako region Map of BC highlighting Northeast region Map of BC highlighting Thompson-Okanagan region Map of BC highlighting Vancouver Island/Coast region
Cariboo
Kootenay
Mainland/Southwest
North Coast and Nechako
Northeast
Thompson-Okanagan
Vancouver Island/Coast
January 2024 January 2023
British Columbia 5.2% 4.4%
Vancouver Island/Coast 4.2% 2.9%
Mainland/Southwest 5.4% 4.5%
Thompson-Okanagan 4.8% 4.3%
Kootenay 7.3% 3.5%
Cariboo 6.6% 6.1%
North Coast and Nechako 6.2% 4.7%
Northeast 4.5% Not available
Source: Monthly Labour Force Survey, 3-month moving average, seasonally unadjusted

Industry Highlights

Learn about the employment trends and opportunities in B.C.'s major industries.

Industry Employment (change since last month) Employment (% change since last month)
Accommodation and food services -1,500 -0.8%
Agriculture -800 -3.5%
Business, building and other support services +9,000 +11.2%
Construction -3,500 -1.5%
Educational services +2,200 +1.0%
Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing +1,100 +0.6%
Health care and social assistance -1,600 -0.4%
Information, culture and recreation -6,600 -4.5%
Manufacturing -2,200 -1.3%
Other Primary -800 -1.6%
Other services (except public administration) +2,700 +2.3%
Professional, scientific and technical services -1,000 -0.3%
Public administration +4,400 +3.0%
Transportation and warehousing +2,400 +1.6%
Utilities +2,100 +17.1%
Wholesale and retail trade -8,500 -1.9%
Source: Labour Force Survey (monthly, seasonally adjusted)