A 1.5% decline in part-time employment in December contributed to a 0.1% increase in B.C.'s unemployment rate, according to Statistics Canada data released Friday.
B.C.'s unemployment rate rose to 8.4% due to a loss of 7,700 part-time jobs in December. The decline, however, was offset by a 6,900 increase in full-time employment.
Nationally, unemployment was unchanged at 8.5% with employment rising in the health care, social assistance, professional and technical services. The largest declines were in transportation and warehousing, public administration, building and other support services.
In the past nine months, employment has stabilized for working-aged men, although youth employment has not recovered since its decline over the summer months. The number of workers aged 55 years and over has increased by 4.7% over the last nine months of 2009.