Young people looking for work in B.C. this summer may already feel discouraged about the job market. Experts say the data backs them up.
The latest Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey said B.C.’s unemployment rate for youth aged 15-24 fell to 14.4 per cent in April as the province added 4,000 youth jobs. That marked a decline from 15.6 per cent the previous month, but overall the youth unemployment rate has continued to climb in recent years.
The Business Council of British Columbia (BCBC) is among those raising the alarm about youth employment in the province.
BCBC Policy Director Jairo Yunis said in a new analysis there are 51,000 fewer young people working in B.C. today than in 2019.
Yunis said youth unemployment rose from 8.6 per cent in 2019 to 13.9 per cent on a 12-month moving-average basis, while adult unemployment saw more modest increases.
But he said the headline youth unemployment rate doesn’t reflect how weak the youth labour market actually is, because it doesn’t factor in young people who stop looking for work.
He points to data showing that in January 2019, B.C. had the third-highest youth labour force participation rate in the country at 68.7 per cent, behind only Quebec and Manitoba. By March 2026, it had fallen to 58.5 per cent, the lowest of any province.
“We’re seeing some signs of what economists call the discouraged worker effect,” said Yunis. “You stop asking yourself, ‘Where should I apply?’ and start asking yourself, ‘Why bother.'”
Youth unemployment is impacting B.C. worse than other provinces
Yunis said the key factors driving youth unemployment in B.C. are weak private sector growth, high costs for employers, and population growth leading to more competition for jobs.
“Since 2019, private sector employment has only grown by around two to four per cent. That’s quite low for B.C. standards and for other provinces’ standards as well,” said Yunis in an interview.
He said youth employment declined even while the population of young people in B.C. grew by about 58,000 between January 2019 and March 2026.
“B.C. absorbed a huge wave of international students and temporary residents who were competing for those exact same entry-level positions that young workers usually fill,” he said.
He said adding to the pressures for businesses are B.C.’s relatively high minimum wage and payroll taxes, and an onerous permitting system for service businesses like restaurants.
“So what we think happened is that in B.C. we had those three pressures at the same time,” said Yunis. “You ended up in a situation where you have more people competing for fewer available positions that were increasingly costly to create, and young people who usually have less experience, shorter resumes, they usually get squeezed out of that.”
The federal government announced in 2024 it was reducing the levels of temporary residents, foreign workers and international students to ease pressures on housing, infrastructure and social services.
Provincial data show that in the fourth quarter of last year, the province saw its highest outflow of international migrants and non-permanent residents on record.
Statistics Canada’s jobs report shows the population of youth aged 15 to 24 was around 661,000 in April, a more than 14 per cent drop compared to the same time last year.
Yunis said the limits on immigration levels will likely reduce pressure on the job market, but we’re not yet seeing the full effect of those moves. Still, hee said it doesn’t change the factors that are limiting hiring in the private sector.
“The cost of hiring a young worker in B.C. is still the highest in the country,” he said. “You can shrink the line-up, but if the door isn’t open then no one will go in.”
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) said in a May report that youth hiring is cooling among B.C. businesses.
The CFIB said many businesses cited increased pressure from B.C.’s expanded PST on a range of services, like security and accounting.
The report also said half of B.C. small businesses reported that minimum wage increases and training costs are preventing them from hiring more youth.
“Small businesses are struggling really a lot on that financial front,” said CFIB policy analyst Molly MacCormack. “They’re not focused on hiring right now because they’re really just focused on survival.”
Why economists are concerned about B.C.’s high youth unemployment
Judith Bosire, chief economist at Vancity, said rising youth unemployment is an early warning sign of a weakening economy.
“When we have that entry point of job market weakening, it cascades through other elements as we move through the growth of the economy,” said Bosire. “All of a sudden, you’re having labor shocks that are happening at different stages just because at the initial stage there was a gap that was essentially not met.”
She said economic uncertainty caused by factors like higher oil prices and U.S. tariffs are making companies more hesitant to take on new workers.
She said youth in B.C. have been particularly hard hit because the services sector takes up a large portion of the province’s economy.
“So the traditional youth entry sort of points are usually retail, food services…and the services sector, if you look over the last few years for BC, has been weakening,” said Bosire. “And if that sector is structurally weakening, it means that opportunities for our youth are shrinking as well.”
Yunis said when young people enter the labour market later, it can have long-term impacts on their careers. He said research indicates that young people who delay joining the workforce end up earning less over their lifetime, have a harder time staying employed, and are more likely to rely on government income support.
“Every year that goes by without these young people getting their foot in the door, the hole just gets deeper,” said Yunis.
What can B.C. do to address the issue?
Yunis and the CFIB call on the province to ensure B.C.’s tax policies are competitive with other provinces, and ease the regulatory burden in sectors that traditionally hire young people.
He said, for example, the province’s recent decision to allow bars and restaurants to source liquor from private retailers was a good step.
B.C. is also leaning further into skilled trades training to support its plans for infrastructure and energy development. The province’s Look West strategy included a commitment to double the investment in trades training to $214 million annually by 2028-29.
“I think particularly for B.C., this is really a good way for the economy to move away from the traditional entry points for the youth and create new pathways for growing into growing sectors,” said Bosire.
Bosire said she’s optimistic the trend could improve as the economy reflects the impact of recent provincial and federal investments to address youth unemployment. That included a $1.5 billion federal investment in 2026-27 for work placement and training programs.
“This may not be resolved in the next six months, but as the new programs kicking in and investments actually come into market, we may see the trend changing,” she said.
