Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation, has issued the following statement on the release of Statistics Canada's Labour Force Survey for May 2022:

“As we focus on creating an economy built for everyone, B.C. continues to lead Canada’s economic recovery with the addition of 5,100 new jobs in May. B.C. saw a shift from part-time to full-time jobs with gains in the private sector.

“The unemployment rate in B.C. has dropped to a three-year low of 4.5%, which is a rate not seen since July 2019. This is a significant improvement from 5.4% in April 2022 and 7.0% from a year ago in May, 2021. There are now nearly 100,000 more people working in B.C. than prior to the pandemic.

“Our unemployment rate throughout the province shows our efforts to build a StrongerBC. Led by Victoria at 4.0%, other cities of note are Prince George at 4.4% (not seasonally adjusted), Abbotsford-Mission at 4.4% and Kelowna at 4.5%.

“May and June mark the start of many students re-entering the workforce for part-time seasonal employment. This is welcome news for many businesses facing labour shortages, especially in the hospitality and tourism sector.

“But we know we need to do more. Right now, there are more jobs than people in the province. That’s why we need to redouble our efforts to bring people to B.C. and build on our recovery by investing in the jobs of tomorrow through our StrongerBC Economic Plan.

“With more than one million jobs forecast over the next decade, we remain laser-focused on meeting our generational commitment to close the skills gap and train more people for the jobs of the future.

“And we’re getting the word out of our skilled labour force internationally. On my recent 10-day trade mission to Europe, we signed agreements with the Netherlands and Finland to help create opportunities and jobs for British Columbians in fields such as agritech and mass timber.

“I was excited to see international leaders’ interest in our strong environmental, social and governance values and look forward to seeing our businesses continue to forge ties around the world, strengthen our supply chain and bring investment opportunities home to B.C.

“We will continue our work to tackle the challenges of today, while growing an economy that works for everyone because we know that an economy built for all is an economy is built to succeed. Our StrongerBC Economic Plan will keep delivering for people in every part of British Columbia by fighting inequality and climate change, while fostering clean and inclusive growth.”

Learn More:

To read more about the European trade mission: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022JERI0027-000878

StrongerBC For Everyone: B.C.’s Economic Recovery Plan: https://strongerbc.gov.bc.ca/