Lower Mainland-Southwest Economic Region
Workforce Insights
Key Insights
Employment
increased by
11,300
jobs from the previous month and
increased by
29,100
jobs compared to the same month last year.
Full-time Employment
increased by
1,200
jobs from the previous month and
decreased by
600
jobs year-over-year.
Part-time Employment
increased by
10,100
jobs from the previous month and
increased by
29,700
jobs year-over-year.
Unemployment
increased by
3,200
people from the previous month and
increased by
22,600
compared to the same month last year.
Workforce Composition by Status
In the most recent month,
Full-time Employment
increased by
1,200
jobs from last month and
decreased by
600
jobs compared to the same month last year.
Part-time Employment
increased by
10,100
jobs from last month and
increased by
29,700
jobs year-over-year.
The number of
Unemployed
individuals
increased by
3,200
from the previous month and
increased by
22,600
compared to last year.
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Employment, Unemployment, and Participation Rate
The
Employment Rate
decreased by
1.6
percentage points year-over-year.
The
Unemployment Rate
increased by
1
percentage points from a year ago.
The
Participation Rate
decreased by
1
percentage points year-over-year.
Jobs Added or Lost by Month
Employment levels
increased by
11,300
jobs in the most recent month and
increased by
29,100
jobs compared to the same month last year.
In the most recent month, there was a net
increased by
11,300
jobs.
Over the last year, the labor market has seen a net
increased by
29,100
jobs in total.
Top 3 Industries in Goods Sector
Construction
:
154,100
workers.
Manufacturing
:
118,600
workers.
Utilities
:
10,200
workers.
The Goods sector is mainly driven by industries such as Construction, Manufacturing, and Agriculture, which together account for a substantial share of the workforce.
Top 3 Industries in Services Sector
Wholesale and retail trade
:
298,700
workers.
Health care and social assistance
:
237,800
workers.
Professional, scientific and technical services
:
236,200
workers.
In the Services sector, Health Care, Retail, and Professional Services lead employment, representing a dominant portion of the workforce.
Top 5 Industries by Change from Previous Month
Educational services
: Change of
5,800
workers (
increased by
3.81
%).
Health care and social assistance
: Change of
5,400
workers (
increased by
2.32
%).
Wholesale and retail trade
: Change of
2,700
workers (
decreased by
0.9
%).
Information, culture and recreation
: Change of
2,700
workers (
decreased by
3.1
%).
Transportation and warehousing
: Change of
2,600
workers (
increased by
2.22
%).
These industries saw the largest month-over-month changes, indicating short-term trends.
Top 5 Industries by Change from Same Month Last Year
Information, culture and recreation
: Change of
27,700
workers (
decreased by
24.73
%).
Wholesale and retail trade
: Change of
22,800
workers (
increased by
8.26
%).
Business, building and other support services
: Change of
13,300
workers (
increased by
24.68
%).
Public administration
: Change of
10,300
workers (
decreased by
11.81
%).
Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing
: Change of
9,000
workers (
increased by
6.92
%).
The year-over-year changes provide insights into longer-term shifts, highlighting industries that have grown or declined significantly.
Conclusion
The overall employment trend is positive, with strong growth in the past year.
Key industries driving the trend are: Construction, Wholesale and retail trade, Professional, scientific and technical services, Educational services, Health care and social assistance.
Updated monthly, these workforce trends focus on changes in total employment,
employment by industry, and employment unemployment rates at the Economic Region level.
Scroll down to explore the data
Economic region
Workforce Composition by Status
In the most recent month,
Full-time Employment
increased by
1,200
jobs from last month and
decreased by
600
jobs compared to the same month last year.
Part-time Employment
increased by
10,100
jobs from last month and
increased by
29,700
jobs year-over-year.
The number of
Unemployed
individuals
increased by
3,200
from the previous month and
increased by
22,600
compared to last year.
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Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Economic region
Employment, Unemployment, and Participation Rate
The
Employment Rate
decreased by
1.6
percentage points year-over-year.
The
Unemployment Rate
increased by
1
percentage points from a year ago.
The
Participation Rate
decreased by
1
percentage points year-over-year.
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Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Economic region
Jobs Added or Lost by Month
Employment levels
increased by
11,300
jobs in the most recent month and
increased by
29,100
jobs compared to the same month last year.
In the most recent month, there was a net
increased by
11,300
jobs.
Over the last year, the labor market has seen a net
increased by
29,100
jobs in total.
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Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Economic region
Top 3 Industries in Goods Sector
Construction
:
154,100
workers.
Manufacturing
:
118,600
workers.
Utilities
:
10,200
workers.
The Goods sector is mainly driven by industries such as Construction, Manufacturing, and Agriculture, which together account for a substantial share of the workforce.
Top 3 Industries in Services Sector
Wholesale and retail trade
:
298,700
workers.
Health care and social assistance
:
237,800
workers.
Professional, scientific and technical services
:
236,200
workers.
In the Services sector, Health Care, Retail, and Professional Services lead employment, representing a dominant portion of the workforce.
Loading...
Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Economic region
Top 5 Industries by Change from Previous Month
Educational services
: Change of
5,800
workers (
increased by
3.81
%).
Health care and social assistance
: Change of
5,400
workers (
increased by
2.32
%).
Wholesale and retail trade
: Change of
2,700
workers (
decreased by
0.9
%).
Information, culture and recreation
: Change of
2,700
workers (
decreased by
3.1
%).
Transportation and warehousing
: Change of
2,600
workers (
increased by
2.22
%).
These industries saw the largest month-over-month changes, indicating short-term trends.
Loading...
Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Economic region
Top 5 Industries by Change from Same Month Last Year
Information, culture and recreation
: Change of
27,700
workers (
decreased by
24.73
%).
Wholesale and retail trade
: Change of
22,800
workers (
increased by
8.26
%).
Business, building and other support services
: Change of
13,300
workers (
increased by
24.68
%).
Public administration
: Change of
10,300
workers (
decreased by
11.81
%).
Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing
: Change of
9,000
workers (
increased by
6.92
%).
The year-over-year changes provide insights into longer-term shifts, highlighting industries that have grown or declined significantly.
Loading...
Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Economic region
Conclusion
The overall employment trend is positive, with strong growth in the past year.
Key industries driving the trend are: Construction, Wholesale and retail trade, Professional, scientific and technical services, Educational services, Health care and social assistance.
Loading...
Data source: Statistics Canada - Labour Force Survey February, 2025
Lower Mainland-Southwest Economic region — Labour Market Outlook
Total Job Openings
Most Job Openings
Job openings and employment by occupation and industry for the period 2024-2034
Forecasted number of new job openings in the period 2024-2034
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Data source: Labour Market Analytics, Forecasting & Information
Forecasted employment in the period 2024-2034
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Data source: Labour Market Analytics, Forecasting & Information
High-opportunity occupations
High opportunity occupations by NOC based on forecasted number of job openings in the period 2024-2034
Data source: Labour Market Analytics, Forecasting & Information
BC workforce supply composition for the period 2024-2034
Forecasted number of new job market entrants in the period 2024-2034
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Data source: Labour Market Analytics, Forecasting & Information
These job openings provide a forecast for the demand for labour
with the associated education background. This is a demand projection only
and is not a measure of how many graduates the B.C. education system needs to produce.
These job openings are projected to be supplied through a mix of young
B.C. residents starting work after being educated either in B.C. or
other jurisdictions, immigrants, migrants from other provinces,
or existing residents pursuing additional education.
Planners should take these other possible sources of supply into account
when using these projections for post-secondary program planning purposes.
©
2025