Bruce Ralston, Minister of Jobs, Trade and Technology, has issued the following statement on the release of the January Labour Force Survey from Statistics Canada:

“As demonstrated in the newest results, higher wages, low unemployment and good jobs in British Columbia show that people are at the centre of our strong and stable economy.

“Wages continued to rise in January, with B.C. among the top provinces for year-over-year growth. In the past year, B.C.’s average wages grew by 4.1%, the highest among provinces. In fact, 2018 was B.C.’s highest annual wage growth in the past 10 years.

“B.C.’s unemployment rate remained the lowest in Canada — for the 17th month in a row — at 4.7%. Private sector jobs have been fuelling employment growth in the province, with an increase of 64,800 in the past year.

“This means people continue to see the benefit of a high-performing economy following many years of wage stagnation.

“B.C.’s economy is expected to outperform the rest of Canada over the next three years. The Economic Forecast Council, a group of bank economists and analysts that are independent of government, estimates that B.C.’s real gross domestic product is expected to grow by 2.6% in both 2019 and 2020.

“We’re working hard to nurture a sustainable economy that works for people.”