A reminder of our painfully slow recession recovery.
Despite the provincial government’s budget statement and reports of large percentage year-over-year increases in some employment sectors, the employment picture in BC is far from where it was before the ecojnomic collapse.
By Iglika Ivanova, 16 Feb 2015, TheTyee.ca
[excerpt]2015 marks the sixth year of B.C.’s recovery from the recession. But it’s been a slow and largely jobless recovery in the province. Here are three facts about jobs I’m currently tracking.
- B.C. needs 93,000 more jobs to return to our pre-recession employment rate (the proportion of working age British Columbians who have jobs).
- The total hours worked for pay in B.C. is lower now than before the recession.
- Median employment income in B.C. was lower in 2012 than pre-recession.
What it means
These three facts point to serious weakness in the B.C. job market on the eve of the provincial budget. They explain why many families continue to struggle with economic insecurity and poverty, and why British Columbians are taking on more and more debt.
But weak income growth is also bad for the economy — it means less purchasing power and less domestic demand, which slows down growth.
At a time when the private sector is not investing, the B.C. government should be stepping in to boost the economy. Strategic investments in key areas including poverty reduction, universal, affordable child care, sustainable transportation, education, and community health services will strengthen our province and double as an effective Jobs Plan. This is what B.C. needs from Budget 2015.
[source]