TERRACE, B.C. – While Canada’s national unemployment rate ticked up to a multi-year high of 7.0% in May, the job market in Northwest B.C. continues to show resilience. The latest data from Statistics Canada shows the unemployment rate for the North Coast & Nechako economic region, which includes Terrace and Kitimat, stood at just 5.1% last month.
This puts the Skeena region well below both the British Columbia average of 6.4% and the national rate.
The national jobs report, released Friday, painted a stagnant picture for the country as a whole, with employment being “little changed” for the second consecutive month. The national rate has now risen for three straight months.
British Columbia was a bright spot in the national report, being one of the few provinces to add jobs in May (+13,000). The province’s steady performance is reflected locally, where major projects continue to drive employment.
However, the national report did contain a warning sign relevant to local families: youth are facing the toughest summer job market in years. The unemployment rate for students aged 15-24 seeking summer work hit 20.1% nationally, a level not seen outside of the pandemic since the late 1990s. This suggests that local youth in the Skeena may face increased competition for summer positions this year.
Overall, while the Canadian economy shows signs of cooling, the data suggests that the job market in the Northwest remains robust compared to the rest of the country.
