Employment rate dipped in Greater Victoria to cap off 2022: StatsCan

Employment rate dipped in Greater Victoria to cap off 2022: StatsCan
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Greater Victoria ended the year with a slight decrease in employment, according to the latest labour force survey from Statistics Canada.

In December, employment in the city fell by 1,110 jobs (-0.5%) compared to the previous month, while the unemployment rate remained relatively unchanged at 3.4 per cent, though that is lower than the provincial employment rate of 4.2 per cent.

However, over the course of the year, employment in Victoria increased by 6,500 jobs (3.1%), and the participation rate rose by 0.2 percentage points to 63 per cent.

Across the province, B.C. ended the year on a strong note as the economy added 17,000 jobs (+0.6%) in December, offsetting a decline in November.

The unemployment rate in the province remained unchanged at 4.2 per cent. In Metro Vancouver, the unemployment rate (4.4%) was little changed in December.

Nationwide, the Canadian labour market also ended the year on a strong note, with the economy adding 104,000 jobs in December.

The unemployment rate fell slightly to five per cent, marking the third decline in four months and edging closer to the record-low of 4.9 per cent reached in June and July.

The rise in employment was driven by an increase in full-time work. Many economists had been expecting a downturn in the economy to show up in Q4 economic data in response to high-interest rates, but the job numbers show no sign of an economy slowing down.

With files from The Canadian Press

Jeff LawrenceJeff Lawrence

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