Unemployment Drops in Northwest, Still Highest in BC

Employment numbers in Canada have returned and even surpassed pre-pandemic levels, according to the September Labour Force Survey.

Employment was up by 0.8 percent as a country in September, with an unemployment rate of 6.9 percent, also down from August.

In BC, employment was up slightly over last month, but edged last September by 6.1 percent.

Unemployment across the province is down to 6.5 percent, from 10.3 last September.

For the Northwest specifically, unemployment dropped to 7.9 percent, but that still leaves it as the highest regional rate in BC.

In the Northeast the rate dropped to 5.7 percent, and in the Cariboo, it hit 6.3 percent.