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Your B.C. Government

Job Creation and Employment

British Columbia has built an economy that has seen record job-creation levels in recent years, with more employment opportunities for people in every part of the province.

What your B.C. Government is doing for job creation and employment:

  • Since December 2001, British Columbia's economy has added 363,000 jobs.
  • Average monthly employment in 2008 was recorded at 2,314,000 jobs, up by 48,000 or 2.1 per cent compared with 2007. This represents the third highest job growth percentage increase in Canada, and exceeds the national growth rate of 1.5 per cent.
  • Since 2001, small businesses in British Columbia have created 172,700 net new jobs – 10,800 in 2008 alone.
  • B.C.'s unemployment is the fourth lowest in Canada at * 8.3 per cent.
  • B.C.'s unemployment rate has been at or below the national average since 2004.
  • Youth unemployment in B.C. in 2000 was 13.7 per cent. For 2008, the youth unemployment rate averaged *8.4 per cent.
  • In 2001, six per cent of British Columbians were earning minimum wage or less. In 2008, that number dropped to 2.7 per cent.
  • British Columbians' average hourly wage is $22.46, third highest in Canada and more than 2.5 times the minimum wage.
  • The average hourly wage for youth is $13.73, third highest in Canada and more than 1.5 times the minimum wage.
  • Real disposable per capita income has gone up every single year since 2001.
  • Real disposable income per capita in B.C. grew by 23.7 per cent from 2000 to 2008. From 1990 to 1999, disposable income per capita increased by 13.5 per cent.
  • In each and every year since 2004, B.C. has finished ahead of the Canadian average in real disposal income growth.
  • British Columbians now pay the lowest provincial income tax in Canada for anyone earning $118,000 or less.
  • An additional 325,000 low-income British Columbians now pay no taxes at all.
  • A family of four earning a combined $70,000 is saving an additional $2,000 a year in income taxes compared with 2001. Those savings add directly to personal disposable income.

*Seasonally adjusted

For more information:
Positive Economic Indicators
Jobs and the Economy