Employees in British Columbia earned an average of $870 per week in July – almost 5% lower than the national average of $914, according to Statistics Canada data released September 27.
Earnings in B.C. have remained at approximately the same level since July 2012, while Canada as a whole saw an increase of 1.3% over the same period.
The country-wide increase was driven by wage growth and changes in composition of employment by industry, occupation and job experience. The average hours worked per week also increased to 33.0 hours in July, from 32.9 one month prior.
The sectors with the highest weekly earnings were:
- mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction: $1,878;
- utilities: $1,676;
- professional, scientific and technical services: $1,268.
The Northwest Territories had the highest levels of weekly earnings at $1,293, followed by Alberta ($1,081) and the Yukon ($986).
