B.C. job counts were unchanged in January according to Statistics Canada’s latest Survey of Employers, Payroll and Hours at 2.56 million positions, nudging down by 624 positions.

Goods-producing industries reported 1,370 more (0.4 per cent) positions while services-producing payrolls added 880 positions (0.04 per cent). The decline in overall headcounts were concentrated in unclassified businesses. Broadly, payroll counts in B.C. have been range-bound over the past year with little change in net positions.

The job vacancy rate edged down to 3.5 per cent in January, with total vacancies falling to around 87,000—lowest level since August 2017. While the job vacancy rate has remained below four per cent since May 2024, this January still marked the lowest level since June 2017. This points to weak hiring sentiment on the part of employers, which has further deteriorated with........

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