More than 35,000 jobs vanished in British Columbia last month, part of a dramatic jump in the jobless rate across Canada.
Statistics Canada reports the number of people looking for work in the country climbed from 6.6 to 7.2 per cent in January with a total loss of 129,000 jobs.
In this province, the January rate was pegged at 6.1 per cent -- a hike of almost one full percentage point from the 5.3 per cent posted in December.
Many of the jobs lost in B.C. have come from the construction and manufacturing sectors.
Greg Shulman owns a sign company. He says his business, Cimac Signs, was still doing well only two months ago.
"By November, I had to lay off one guy completely and by the end of December full time, who's been with me for three years, just over three years now, he's part time now," he says.
Cimac Signs is just one of many local businesses forced to layoff employees.
Premier Gordon Campbell is promising to get public projects going quickly to preserve construction jobs.
"We've got a number of initiatives, Olympics will bridge a bridge in this these difficult times, but I think everyone has to understand this will be tough year and unfortunately January started to show that," he says.
B.C. still has more construction jobs than it did two years ago, but by all accounts things will get worse before they get better.
Analysts believe the slide will continue well through 2009. T.D. economist Derek Burelton is predicting the national jobless rate could soar to 8.8 per cent through the first half of this year.
Adapting to the changing times
The announcement has the B.C. Federation of Labour calling on the provincial government to revise eligibility rules for employment insurance.
"The Gordon Campbell government would have us believe that B.C. is well positioned to weather the current economic downturn," says Sinclair.
"This will come as little relief to the tens of thousands of people who lost their jobs last month or the people who are worried about losing their jobs in the months ahead."
He says the rules must be revised so ineligible workers can receive some support during the deepening recession.
Job losses across the board
Of total job losses, Ontario shed 71,000 jobs, half in the manufacturing sector. Quebec was also hit hard, with a loss of 26,000.
Even high paying executives are suffering, said James Geraghty of Happen, a Toronto-based placement agency. He said experienced mid-level executives earning over $100,000 are coming into his offices at about 25 a week.
"We've seen a big increase in January, it's almost tripled," he said.
Statistics Canada said the data set a number of dubious records.
It was the largest employment decrease since the agency began keeping comparable figures in 1976.
The manufacturing loss was the worst single-month contraction on record.
And the 0.6-point jump in the unemployment rate was the steepest one-month increase since 1992.
If there was any light shining through the black clouds it was in the fact that Canadians who still had jobs were earning 4.8 per cent more than a year ago.
Employment in health care and social assistance jobs increased by 31,000.
But almost all other sectors reported job losses, including transportation, construction, furniture, electronics, electrical equipment, appliances and clothing.
With files from The Canadian Press
