The BC economy is rock solid and the unemployment rate is the lowest in the country.
Dominion Bond Rating Services, Standard and Poor’s, and Fitch have all given the province a triple-A credit rating and Minister of Jobs, Trade, and Technology Bruce Ralston said BC has had the lowest unemployment rate in Canada for 23 months in a row
“It’s a record since they [started] keeping this number in 1976,” said Ralston. “The overall rate for British Columbians is 4.5 percent.”
Ralston said the Rural Economic Development Fund helps families who depend on the forest industry to make ends meet in the face of mill shutdowns and strike action.
“This transition has been a long time coming, the previous government oversaw the loss of 30,000 forest jobs,” said Ralston. “We’re determined to do what we can to reinvigorate the forest sector and I know the Ministry of Forests has a specific plan for the coastal forest industry in particular.”
With mill shutdowns and strike action a reality in coastal BC, Ralston said the province is helping forest workers interested in transitioning into industries like construction, that require similar skill-sets.
That money comes from the Rural Economic Development Fund.
In the last year, more than 109,000 jobs were created in our province.
