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A clash of views on how easy it is to land a job in Greater Victoria

Job prospects in Greater Victoria are brighter than the gloomy picture painted by a Conference Board of Canada report, says Frank Bourree, principal of Chemistry Consulting.
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A busier tourist season has helped to boost employment in Greater Victoria.

Job prospects in Greater Victoria are brighter than the gloomy picture painted by a Conference Board of Canada report, says Frank Bourree, principal of Chemistry Consulting.

“I can’t believe the results the Conference Board has come up with,” said Bourree, whose Victoria firm monitors labour market trends as part of a contract to administer the province’s Work B.C. program in this region.

The Conference Board’s monthly help-wanted index, released Tuesday, placed Victoria with 15 other Canadian cities that are forecast to have negative job prospects in the near term.

Bourree said the facts don’t back up that conclusion.

“We are at the beginning of a significant upturn in performance in the tourism sector, which is a major driver here. We have stability in the provincial government and I think it’s likely the hiring freeze will come off over the next six to 12 months. The tech sector is booming and can’t find enough people, and general employment trends in our Work B.C. centres are up,” he said.

Work B.C. helps people on income assistance or in social programs.

“We have one of the lowest unemployment rates [5.5 per cent in July] for a [metropolitan] centre in Canada and I think the trend will continue to drop,” he said.

Dan Gunn, executive director of the Victoria Advanced Technology Centre, agrees.

“Last year, we saw our largest tech companies grow by 18 per cent in terms of revenue. And they continue to hire and continue to expand and we think 2013 and 2014 present plenty of opportunity,” he said, noting the VIATeC job board has 78 positions posted despite summer being a slow period.

More than 60 job listings is a barometer that things are in good shape, VIATec says, while 80 to 100 listings indicates a very healthy sector.

Alan Arcand, principal economist with the Conference Board, said the help-wanted index is based on surveying online job ads.

The board measures the number of unemployed in a region compared to the number of job postings.

“This [June] in Victoria it fell compared to [May] therefore we make the assumption, which tends to be true, that there is a link between the number of online job ads and future labour market activity, though only in the near term,” Arcand said. According to the board, Victoria’s job listing count dropped by 3.7 per cent in June.

Bruce Carter, CEO of the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce, said the Conference Board is off target but, he added, the local job market could be vulnerable.

Tech, manufacturing and tourism are all doing well in Victoria, but there are questions hanging over one of the region’s largest employers — the provincial government, he said. “That’s probably where the challenge comes. Not only do we see the [province’s] core review — and there’s no question in my mind that will end in some workforce reductions — but the other part is the challenge for all of the providers that service government,” he said. “They are having to continue on fiscal restraint budgets so they’re not spending a lot of money.”

aduffy@timescolonist.com