B.C.’S new 2024 Labour Market Outlook (LMO) estimates more than one million job openings in B.C. over the next decade, says the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills.
The 2025 LMO will consider the impacts of U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods and federal changes to immigration levels.
The LMO delivers a comprehensive forecast of job-market trends over the coming decade. Its purpose is to help current and future post-secondary students, organizations, workers and employers make informed decisions about careers, skills training, education and hiring.
The 2024 edition uses data collected until April 2024, before changes in the federal immigration targets. Slower population growth will impact labour supply, the demand for some goods and services, and the demand for workers in certain sectors, all of which have implications for the provincial economy. The 2024 LMO was likewise created prior to the U.S. government’s threats to impose tariffs on Canadian goods.
The accuracy of any forecast depends on various assumptions about the future, some of which are difficult to anticipate. Due to this, labour market forecasts are updated annually to factor in changing circumstances. Work is underway on the next edition of B.C.’s LMO.
Compared to the 2023 edition, the 2024 LMO projected 122,000 more job openings for a total of 1.12 million over the next 10 years. Of these job openings, 449,000 are identified as the result of economic growth, with the remainder due to replacing retiring workers. By 2034, employment is projected to reach 3.3 million, up from 2.8 million today for average annual growth of 1.4%.
As government works with partners to safeguard B.C.’s economy and respond to the threat of tariffs, the Province says it will continue to make education and training more accessible, affordable and relevant, and will continue to prioritize sectors with labour shortages to ensure B.C. has a skilled workforce.
BACKGROUNDER
B.C. job outlook facts
* The 2024 Labour Market Outlook (LMO) forecasts thousands of jobs in every region of B.C.
* The regions with the largest number of job openings included the Mainland/Southwest and Vancouver Island/Coast.
* Approximately 60% of future job openings – 671,000 jobs – are identified to replace workers leaving the labour force.
* People 29 and younger entering the labour force for the first time are expected to make up 47% of new job seekers.
* Five industries identified in the 2024 LMO account for approximately half of the total job openings projected over the next 10 years, including:
* health care and social assistance (178,100 job openings);
* professional, scientific, and technical services (150,300 job openings);
* retail trade (123,700 job openings);
* construction (99,600 job openings);
* education (79,800 job openings).
* Twenty-three new “high-opportunity occupations” were added to the 2024 LMO, including:
* heating, refrigeration and air-conditioning mechanics;
* home-building and renovation managers;
* land surveyors;
* mechanical engineers;
* opticians;
* pharmacy technicians.
* The LMO identifies 105,300 job openings expected in the trades.
