Victoria Unemployment Rising, but 1000’s of Job Postings Available?

Job Boom Continues, but Unemployment Rate Rising

2017 is turning out to be a big year for Victoria, as the city continues to see a boom in economic activity trickling down from the tech industry into real estate, construction, and tourism.

This surge in technology and construction has led to an increase in economic activity, causing Victoria’s unemployment rate to drop to 3.8% in March, which at the time was one of the lowest unemployment rates in Canada.

However, that might not be the case for long, as unemployment in the capital region has been rising for the past four months, and now sits at 4.6% according to Statistics Canada. While that number might seem small, it doesn’t seem to match the state of Vancouver Island’s job market, which currently has thousands of job postings on popular sites such as Craigslist and Indeed, not to mention the countless “help wanted” and “now hiring” signs in windows around the capital region.

What About Temporary Foreign Workers?

While there seems to be work in several major industries available, the hospitality industry is seeing the greatest shortage of workers. Low wages and lack of affordable housing make filling these positions difficult, causing some businesses to have to close their doors for good.

Tourism Victoria President & CEO Paul Nursey cited changes to the Temporary Foreign Workers Program as one of the main factors affecting the hospitality industry, as recent changes to the program require employers to do more “to recruit Canadians, particularly those who are typically under-represented in our workforce, like youth, newcomers, women, Indigenous people, and people with disabilities.”

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