B.C. job losses so bad under the Liberals, other provinces have to make up

VICTORIA – Latest statistics Canada numbers show that job losses under the Liberal government are so bad, other provinces across the nation have to make up for B.C., say the New Democrats.

“We lost more jobs than the entire country somehow, which means other provinces have to make up for us. That’s an embarrassing record for this premier,” said New Democrat finance critic Mike Farnworth. “It’s no wonder thousands more people are fleeing B.C. than are coming here.

“We have the worst record in the nation for private sector jobs, and we lost more jobs last month.”

According to Statistics Canada, B.C. lost 10,400 jobs last month. Since September 2011 when the premier first made big promises about private sector jobs, B.C. has had the worst record in the nation for private sector job growth.

“In the meantime, we’ve suffered a net loss of over 12,000 people to other provinces since the premier started talking about jobs. The premier’s failure on jobs is making people flee the province.”

Farnworth says it gets worse.

“Even if you have a job in B.C., life is becoming less affordable under the Liberals,” said Farnworth. “While the Liberals jack up every fee and hidden tax under the sun to pay for their mismanagement of the province, wages have been stagnant.

“In fact, average weekly wages in B.C. fell by $5.27 last month, and we’ve seen the slowest growth in wages over the past year in the country.”

New Democrats said the province can’t afford to wait another 10 to 20 years for jobs to arrive.

“The Liberals have put all of their eggs in the LNG basket at the expense of virtually every other sector in the province,” said Farnworth. “We need job creation now in forestry, tech and other sectors, and when the LNG industry starts moving we need to ensure our workers are trained for those jobs.”