FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

VICTORIA, B.C.: Full-time work in B.C. is vanishing while the NDP refuses to abandon the PST tax hike.

According to the Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey, B.C. lost 26,000 full-time jobs in August as unemployment climbed to 6.5 per cent, exposing the growing cost of the NDP’s failed economic agenda. A gain of 20,600 part-time jobs masked much of the 5,500 overall employment decline. Stable, full-time work is getting harder to find.

B.C. is also falling further behind Alberta. Over the past year, employment in B.C. has grown by just 0.5 per cent, compared with 3.6 per cent in Alberta.

The forestry industry has been dealt a devastating blow due to NDP failure. B.C. natural resources employment has fallen 17.2 per cent over the past year, as communities face mill closures, curtailments and uncertainty. With major pulp operations in Prince George, Howe Sound and Quesnel impacted, forestry communities are under growing pressure.

“B.C. is losing full-time jobs, our forestry communities are losing good-paying work, and the NDP has failed to protect the industry that built so many of our communities,” said Kiel Giddens, Shadow Minister for Labour and Economic Development. “As mills close and curtail operations, families are left wondering where the next good-paying job will come from. We need a government that stands up for these workers and fights to create new opportunities.”

NDP Pushes Ahead with Another Tax on Business

Despite these warning signs, the NDP is moving ahead with its October 1 expansion of the PST to professional services, including accounting, architecture, engineering and geoscience.

These aren’t optional costs for businesses. They are services businesses rely on to operate, invest, build and create jobs. At a time when B.C. businesses are already dealing with tariffs, rising costs and economic uncertainty, the last thing they need is another tax from the provincial government.

“Small businesses are just trying to hang on. They are facing higher costs, tariffs and uncertainty, and the NDP’s answer is to add another tax,” said Giddens. “When you increase the cost of doing business, you make it harder for businesses to hire and retain full-time workers. At a time when B.C. is already losing full-time jobs, the last thing businesses need is another tax.”

“Prosperity doesn’t come from government. It comes from people who get up every morning, go to work, take a risk, start a business and build something,” said Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Leader of the Conservative Party of B.C. “Our job is to give those people a fair shot, not pile more costs on their backs. The B.C. Conservatives will fight to make B.C. a place where people can work hard, build a business, raise a family and get ahead again.”

B.C. needs a government that gets people back to work, protects good-paying jobs and stops making it harder to invest, hire and grow.

– 30 –

Media Contact:
Media@conservativebc.ca