Amid “trade shocks” impacting Canada’s national economy in 2025, the provincial government believes that “British Columbians responded with strength.”
These are the words of Ravi Parmar, the region’s Minister of Forests, who recently issued a statement following the release of Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey for December 2025.
The Labour Force Survey showed B.C. adding 24,000 jobs in 2025.
“Today’s Labour Force Survey numbers for December 2025 show over the course of the past year, B.C. added 24,100 jobs overall,” stated Parmar on behalf of Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Jobs and Economic Growth.
While Vancouver is known for its tech-oriented workforce, the construction sector dominated province-wide jobs growth.
“This reflects our government’s commitment to building the schools, hospitals, and transportation infrastructure that British Columbians rely on,” said Parmar.
The current unemployment rate in B.C. is 6.4%, statistics show, slightly below the national average of 6.8%.
“While December saw a slight loss of 3,300 jobs, B.C.’s unemployment rate remained unchanged at 6.4%, the third lowest in Canada, despite the national unemployment rate rising to 6.8%,” stated Parmar.
Kahlon is currently on a trade mission in India, where B.C. and Canada are showcasing the region’s strength in areas like clean energy and clean technology to “government and business leaders in major centres of commerce and technology.”
“Attracting new investment, targeting new, growing markets, and supporting good-paying jobs in British Columbia is more important than ever,” argues Parmar. “By attracting investment and reducing our reliance on U.S. markets through diversified trade partnerships, we will create more good jobs and prosperity for all British Columbians.”
Through Canada’s “Look West” plan, B.C. hopes to “expand skills training” for its local workforce while growing “key sectors” of the economy including tech.
“As a province, we’re well positioned to be the economic engine of Canada’s future,” stated Parmar.
The technology industry today accounts for 6% percent of Canada’s direct economic value, or about $130 billion.
In British Columbia, nearly 7% of the workforce is in tech. It’s Canada’s third-largest tech workforce, behind Quebec (317,000) and Ontario (690,000) and ahead of Alberta (121,000).
The region of Vancouver is the third-largest metro area in Canada for net tech employment, housing 150,000 workers—behind Montreal’s 217,000 and Toronto’s 414,000 but ahead of Calgary’s 69,000 and Edmonton’s 40,000.
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