It appears things are working.
Figures released by Statistics Canada show more people in the region are working right now than at this time one year ago.
The unemployment rate for the Kootenay region dropped by 1.7 per cent to 6.6 for the month of June, compared to 8.3 per cent one year ago.
Those numbers reflect a province-wide trend in job growth, with over 3,600 new jobs created in B.C. last month and the unemployment rate mirroring the Kootenay one at 6.6 per cent. Overall, B.C. gained 2,400 full-time positions and added 1,100 part-time jobs.
The gains were some of the biggest in the nation, behind only Alberta. B.C. ranks second in terms of job gains since June 2011 when compared to other provinces, adding 53,000 jobs (Alberta added 55,400 jobs).
Manufacturing continues to experience steady growth with last month showing strong gains of 10,600 jobs, according to figures released by the province. Other areas of job growth include health care and social assistance (+6,200), business, building and other support services (+4,600), and educational services (+4,100).
The national unemployment rate of 7.2 per cent is also lower than where it was last year, which was 7.3 per cent. As youth employment increased, the unemployment rate for the 15-24 age category declined by 2.3 percentage points from May.
Overall, B.C.’s labour force remains steady and now stands at 2,485,800. Compared with one year ago, B.C.’s labour force has increased by 39,000 people.
Regionally, the highest job growth was reported in the Lower Mainland-Southwest, which gained 15,900 positions, and Thompson-Okanagan, which gained 7,800 positions.