Greater Victoria's unemployment rate nudged up last month, as the economic downturn saw a record-high drop in jobs across the country for a single month.
While the capital region's unemployment rate rose to four per cent in January -- up from 3.6 per cent in December -- Victoria was still the third best in the country for employment, after Regina and Edmonton.
The jobless rate for sa国际传媒 last month was 6.1 per cent, up from 5.3 per cent in December.
The national unemployment rate was 7.2 per cent, up from 6.6 per cent in December. Nationally, sa国际传媒 lost a startling 129,000 jobs in January, almost all full-time positions, Statistics sa国际传媒 said.
Local job losses were in everything from accommodation and food services to public administration, information, culture and recreation, and professional, technical and scientific services, the federal agency said.
The number of people working in retail and wholesale trade in Victoria was down by 2,900 from last January on a seasonally adjusted basis, said Vincent Ferrao of Statistics sa国际传媒. Accommodation and food services numbers are down by 3,400 for the same period.
Though Victoria can no longer boast of having the lowest unemployment rate in the country, the news is not all grim.
Ken Stratford, CEO of Business Victoria, noted developments such as the massive expansion of the Town and Country shopping centre will continue to employ a large number of people for at least another year. A $60-million expansion planned for the Hillside Shopping Centre will also create plenty of work. "We are in for some constraints, but at the local level, we are still in very good shape, and we need to keep that in mind," Stratford said, noting the region is still running below the five per cent unemployment rate that's deemed full employment.
At Island Saw and Tool, two job openings, one for a sharpener and one in the warehouse, are attracting interest. "Quite a number of people have come in over the last two or three days," said salesman Dave Smith, as he looked at a stack of new resum脙漏s.
Christine Stoneman, human-resources consultant for the tourism industry, said employers have a larger pool to choose from. "The feedback we are getting from employers is, 'Gee, it is really nice to have choice again.' "
It's too early to judge what's ahead for tourism-related employment, said Stoneman, who works for Chemistry Consulting. A clearer picture will emerge in March, when hotels typically start hiring staff, she said
The job board for VIATeC, representing the Island's high-tech sector, lists 57 positions, including senior web analyst, software developer and marine product technologist.
sa国际传媒's Public Service online job site lists 63 jobs in Victoria and the Islands, including data entry clerk, office manager, child protection worker, senior business analyst, nurses and occupational therapist.
The Vancouver Island Health Authority is advertising hundreds of jobs in its poster publicizing its March 9 career fair at S.J. Willis School on Topaz Avenue.
sa国际传媒 shed a record 68,000 full-time jobs in January as part of a massive labour shift that saw full-time employment plunge while part-time employment increased.
Statistics sa国际传媒 said yesterday that the job loss -- nearly all in manufacturing and construction -- was offset by a 33,000-job gain in part-time employment.
The recent federal budget said the government's stimulus measures would create or maintain 190,000 jobs. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said in the budget that the government would introduce further stimuli if required, a point he repeated Thursday in advance of the jobs report.
The two cities with better unemployment rates than Victoria's, Regina and Edmonton, boast jobless rates of 3.2 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively.
Bucking the national trend, Regina's unemployment rate actually dropped from 3.6 per cent in December.
