The number of British Columbians receiving Employment Insurance benefits spiked by 12.8 percent from August to September and was up 130.7 percent from a year earlier. That was the largest gain in Canada, after only Alberta, according to Statistics Canada data released today.
Across Canada the number of people receiving EI benefits rose by 54,300 people, or 7.1 percent, from August to September.
Employment peaked in October 2008, a StatsCan newsletter notes. The number of beneficiaries has since climbed rapidly, leveling off in recent months.
The leveling may be explained in part by the number of people who have exhausted their benefits. “The change in the number of regular EI beneficiaries is the reflection of various situations, including people becoming beneficiaries, and people leaving the EI system, either to go back to work or because they have exhausted their weeks of benefits,” the newsletter said.
“In British Columbia, 11,300 more people were receiving benefits in September, following decreases in July and August,” it said. “Since the start of the labour market downturn last fall, the number of beneficiaries in the province has more than doubled to 99,400.”
The largest employment losses in B.C. were in construction, manufacturing, transportation and warehousing and professional, scientific and technical services.
Andrew MacLeod is The Tyee’s Legislative Bureau Chief in Victoria. Reach him here.
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Ramona777
2 years ago
The Best Place In The World ....
to be rich.
High unemployment and once again, the top spot in Canada for child poverty.
How will Campbell spin this in between Olympic photo ops and where the $^%* is Carole James?
MichaelT
2 years ago
Join today! Call your friends!
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=187860097379&ref=nf
No-Good Unemployed Bastards of Canada
MichaelT
2 years ago
uhhm that was weird and not
uhhm that was weird and not me posting a billion times - just once....HONEST!
freebear
2 years ago
Great! More (paid) volunteers 4 Owelimpics!
They can join the (paid) volunteer government employees at the Owelimpics!
Van Isle
2 years ago
This is most strange; the
This is most strange; the other day I heard Bill Good basically declare that the recession is over. Then he gets his comical-side-kick-relief man out who quotes a bunch of numbers and confirms what Bill has just told us. My message to all those happy-days-are-here-again crowd; the economy is going to get worse before it gets better.
Frank
2 years ago
Nice
Nice job managing the economy Liberals. If this trend continues, by 2013, less people will be working than not.
Barryeng
2 years ago
Hansen.
And our great finance minister says that the reason things in BC are so bad now is that they were so good before. Please find me one person in this province who will buy that line. Even those apologists that sit beside him in the house will be embarassed by his latest excuses.