Statistics Canada reported Wednesday that 81,480 British Columbians collected employment insurance in January 2010.
That's 7% less than the 87,580 people who collected EI the previous month.
Employment has increased significantly in B.C. since June 2009, according to the federal number cruncher, particularly in finance, insurance, real estate and leasing.
Canadawide, 698,800 people collected EI in January, down 6.4% from December.
Alberta showed the strongest reduction with EI claims falling 14.8% between January and December 2009. Nunavut was the only Canadian jurisdiction to show a rise in EI recipients.
The numbers hint at a strong trend of jobless Canadians finding work.
January 2010 was the fourth consecutive month where there were declines in each province for the number of EI recipients.
Claims for EI benefits is also on the decline.
Statistics Canada noted that Ottawa received 239,100 initial and renewal claims for EI benefits. That's down 20,200 from December.
Claims fell in every province except Newfoundland and Labrador.