B.C. sees sharp job losses in July

The B.C. job market took a big hit last month, reversing nearly all the gains made in May and June .

The province shed 16,300 jobs in July, while unemployment ticked up 0.3 percentage points to land at 5.9 per cent, according to data released Friday from Statistics Canada.

The nation as a whole lost 41,000 jobs and unemployment remained static at 6.9 percent, indicating more people were leaving the workforce altogether.

B.C. job losses were led by construction (-7,600 jobs) and education services (4,200 jobs). Gains were led by other services, excluding public administration (+5,200 jobs).

More to come …