BC Tourism and Hospitality Employment Tracker

Readers should be aware that the LFS is a sample survey and estimates are subject to both sampling and non-sampling errors.

Statistics Canada develops national labour market projections based on a monthly LFS survey of 56,000 households, covering 100,000 individuals from across Canada. Data is available on a sector (aligned with specific NAICS codes) and regional basis (e.g. by development region within BC). While this sample size provides for statistically reliable projections at the national, provincial and industry levels, the results become less statistically reliable once data is presented at the sector and regional level within BC.

As an illustration, BC accounts for about 12% of Canadian households and the Tourism and Hospitality sector typically employs about 12% of British Columbians. Applying these percentages, we would expect that about 1.4% of the individuals covered in the survey may be associated with the Tourism and Hospitality industry in BC (i.e. Of the 100,000 individuals captured in the household survey, about 1,400 would be associated with the Tourism and Hospitality industry in BC; this would provide a statistically reliable estimate of employment in the industry, equal to ± 2.6% at a confidence level of 95%). As the projections are broken down by sector within the industry and by development region within BC, the results are based on fewer and fewer surveys (and therefore become less statistically reliable). The results are also subject to rounding errors (e.g. results are reported in increments of 2,500).

As such, readers should be cautious when interpreting results presented at the sector and regional levels, particularly for smaller sectors and regions where the results can vary significantly on a month to month basis.

For additional information related to the LFS Study, please refer to the LFS User Guide. For further information about statistical reliability, please refer to Table 7.1 (Coefficients of Variation) in the LFS User Guide. Generally speaking, the larger the count presented in a graph or table, the greater the statistical reliability. When the count (e.g. the number of people employed in the Food and Beverage sector) is greater than or equal to 39,600, the coefficient of variation (CV) is less than or equal to 10%; when the count in the range of 39,600 and 13,900, the CV is from 10% to 20%; and when the counts are below 10,000, the CV is typically 20% or above.

For more information, please refer to Table 7.1 - Coefficient of variation (CV) for estimates of monthly totals, Canada and provinces, from the LFS User Guide.

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by the statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. Created against the background of the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is designed to provide common definitions of the industrial structure of the three countries and a common statistical framework to facilitate the analysis of the three economies. NAICS is based on supply-side or production-oriented principles, to ensure that industrial data, classified to NAICS, are suitable for the analysis of production-related issues such as industrial performance^[1].

This employment tracker follows the Tourism Satellite Account’s definition of Tourism and Hospitality sector, which is defined by the following NAICS codes:

• Accommodation:
• 7211 Traveller accommodation
• 7212 Recreational vehicle (RV) parks and recreational camps
• Food and Beverage Services:
• 7224 Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)
• 7225 Full-service restaurants and limited-service eating places
• Recreation and Entertainment:
• 5121 Motion picture and video exhibition
• 7111 Performing arts companies
• 7112 Spectator sports
• 7115 Independent artists, writers and performers
• 7121 Heritage institutions
• 7131 Amusement parks and arcades
• 7132 Gambling industries
• 7139 Other amusement and recreation industries
• Transportation and Travel Services:
• 4811 Scheduled air transport
• 4812 Non-scheduled air transport
• 4821 Rail transportation
• 4831 Deep sea, coastal and great lakes water transportation
• 4832 Inland water transportation
• 4851 Urban transit systems
• 4853 Taxi and limousine service
• 4854 School and employee bus transportation
• 4855 Charter bus industry
• 4859 Other transit and ground passenger transportation
• 4871 Scenic and sightseeing transportation – land
• 4872 Scenic and sightseeing transportation – water
• 4879 Scenic and sightseeing transportation – other
• 5321 Automotive equipment rental and leasing
• 5615 Travel arrangement and reservation services

Further details can be found here. Detailed definitions of the NAICS code can be found here.

LFS collects data from the eight economic development regions within British Columbia: North Coast, Nechako, Northeast, Cariboo, Vancouver Island/Coast, Mainland/Southwest, Thompson Okanagan, and the Kootenays. The following map shows the eight economic development regions in British Columbia.

Source: https://pwp.vpl.ca/siic/job-search-resources/regions-of-british-columbia/

While there are eight development regions in BC, this employment tracker reports data for six regions:

• Cariboo
• Lower Mainland
• Northern BC (North Coast, Northeast, Nechako)
• Thompson Okanagan
• Kootenay
• Vancouver Island

Three of the Northern regions (Northeast, North Coast, and Nechako) are sparsely sampled by the LFS, so the data for these regions are combined and defined to be Northern BC.

Comparison of Development Regions to Tourism Regions in BC

The map below compares the eight economic development regions (black uppercase text and transparent) to the six tourism regions (white text and coloured) in BC. The six tourism regions within British Columbia include Northern BC, Cariboo Chilcotin Coast, Vancouver Island, Vancouver Coast & Mountains, Thompson Okanagan, and Kootenay Rockies. The tourism regions align with the six regional destination marketing organizations in British Columbia. As indicated below, while there is some commonality between the two sets of regional definitions, no region aligns directly with their counterpart in the opposite set.

Source: GO2HR. https://www.go2hr.ca/essential-tips-info/working-in-bc-tourism-regions;
WorkBC. https://www.workbc.ca/labour-market-industry/regional-profiles.aspx

Chart 1 tracks monthly employment in BC’s Tourism and Hospitality sector since 2017. Users can select data for each sector at the right-hand side of the chart. Display options include line chart or bar chart. Users may also compare employment data across sectors for a single selected year. This option is available by clicking the Invert Options button at the bottom right of the chart window.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing the data used to create the graph.

Chart 2 displays Tourism and Hospitality employment information for each of the economic development regions in BC Users can select data for each region at the right-hand side of the chart. Display options include line chart or bar chart. Users may also compare employment data across regions for a single selected year. This option is available by clicking the Invert Options button at the bottom right of the chart window.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 3 displays the same employment information but for each of the Tourism and Hospitality sectors and economic development regions in BC since 2017. For each region and year, users can select data for multiple sectors at the right-hand side of the chart. Users may also compare employment data across regions for any selected sector and year. This option is available by clicking the Invert Options button at the bottom right of the chart window.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 4 shows employment levels broken down by leading occupations (in 3-digits NOCs) for each Tourism and Hospitality sector in BC Users can select data for each sector at the right-hand side of the chart. Users may also compare employment data across multiple sectors for any selected occupation. This chart also provides an option to show year over year changes in employment levels of a sector’s leading occupations. This provides a comparison of pre and post pandemic employment levels in selected occupations and sectors. This option is available by selecting Across Years under Display.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 5 presents a series of employment distributions in BC’s Tourism and Hospitality Sector by selected characteristics such as gender, age group, and education levels. Data is presented for the latest available month: April 2021. User may switch between charts by selecting an option under Characteristics at the top right of the chart window.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 6 tracks monthly full time and part time employment in BC’s Tourism and Hospitality sector since 2019. This chart has three display options, which can be toggled at the lower right-hand side of the chart. The first option displays the total employment as well as the percentage of full time and part time workers; while this option is selected, a single a single year and sector can be displayed at a time. The second option shows all sectors at once, and allows the user to select as single year and status at a time. The third option shows all years at once, and allows the user to select a single status and sector at a time.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 7 tracks the labour force in each of the Tourism and Hospitality sectors in BC This chart has three display options, which can be toggled in the lower right-hand corner of the chart. The first option displays the total monthly labour force for a selected sector for the last three years since 2019. The second option shows the total monthly labour force broken down into employed and unemployed workers for a selected year and sector. The third option displays the total monthly labour force for any number of sectors in a given year.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 8 tracks the labour force in each of the economic development regions in BC This chart has three display options, which can be toggled in the lower right-hand corner of the chart. The first option displays the total monthly labour force for a selected region for the last three years since 2019. The second option shows the total monthly labour force broken down into employed and unemployed workers for a selected year and region. The third option displays the total monthly labour force for any number of regions in a given year.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 9 tracks the unemployment rate of the Tourism and Hospitality sector in BC This chart has four display options, which can be toggled in the lower right-hand corner of the chart. The first two options allow users to group data by sector and the last two options allow users to group data by region. The first and third option, labeled "filter by", will display the monthly unemployment rate for a selected sector or region over the past three years since 2019. The second and fourth options, labeled "show all", will display the unemployment rate for any number of sectors or regions for one selected year.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Readers should note that Canadians are considered unemployed if they are actively seeking work. The number of individuals employed in BC’s Tourism and Hospitality sector has decreased by 70,000 from February 2020 to date, but the number of “unemployed” individuals increased by only 4,000, which shows that unemployed individuals have decided that actively seeking work is either not beneficial, or they are waiting for businesses to re-open before continuing to look for work. The abruptness of the job losses resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the attached restrictions has created a unique labor market and therefore the unemployment rate can only tell part of the story. When restrictions are lifted, businesses are able to re-open, and emergency benefits are drawn back, the unemployment rate will become a more accurate indicator of the relative strength of the labour market.

Chart 10 tracks the hours worked in one week in the Tourism and Hospitality sector in B.C each month. This chart has four display options, which can be toggled in the lower right-hand corner of the chart. The first two options allow users to group data by sector and the last two options allow users to group data by region. The first and third option, labeled "filter by", will display the monthly hours worked for one selected sector or region over the past three years since 2019. The second and fourth options, labeled "show all", will display the hours worked for any number of sectors or regions for one selected year.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 11 tracks the average hourly wage in the Tourism and Hospitality sector in B.C each month. This chart has four display options, which can be toggled in the lower right-hand corner of the chart. The first two options allow users to group data by sector and the last two options allow users to group data by region. The first and third option, labeled "filter by", will display the hourly wage for one selected sector or region over the past three years since 2019. The second and fourth options, labeled "show all", will display the hourly wage for any number of sectors or regions for one selected year.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.

Chart 12 displays the monthly sales of food services and drink places in thousands of dollars each month for the last three years since 2019.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing the data used to create the graph.

Chart 13 displays the hotel occupancy rate each month for the last three years since 2019.

Clicking the View Table button beneath the graph will expand a table displaying the same information as the graph. There is also a Download button, which will download a csv file containing all of the data used to create the graph.