Industry in Victoria, British Columbia

With the extreme unaffordability of much of Victoria's housing market, any home purchase in the area will be necessarily accompanied by obtaining a new job in the city if you want to make your mortgage payments. This of course doesn't apply to the independently wealthy, but how many of us are lucky enough to have trust funds? For the rest of us, there's the burden of trying to find a job, set up a new office, or buy MLM leads in an unfamiliar city. To help make your transition into Victoria's workforce a little easier, we've created this page on Victoria's industry so you would know where the most likely sectors to have job openings are.

Tourism and Real Estate

As you know, Victoria bills itself as the major tourist destination on the Canadian West Coast. Its historic museums, opulent hotels, and sunny beaches attract thousands of visitors every month, meaning there are usually openings in tourism, hospitality and food service. Mississauga wedding sites just can't compete with the city's botanical gardens for photography either. All this natural beauty of course leads to a lot of people wanting to live there, so real estate has typically been a strong sector for the economy as well, pushing real estate prices into the stratosphere. The recent mortgage crisis has put a dent in this market, but it is already on its way back up.

Technology

In the last two years, the technology sector has replaced tourism as the largest contributor to Victoria's economy. Companies in Victoria that take advantage of the R & D tax credit Canada offers to technology developers turn out products such as computers, light aircraft, and telecommunications equipment. The presence of Canadian Forces Base Esquimault has bolstered development in this sector. Opportunities in the technology sector are often for engineers, computer technicians and architects. Software produced by these companies has assisted other endeavors in Victoria, such as online book publishing, while the technology industry is in turn supported by the investment banking sector.

Education and Government

While every city in Canada has opportunities for primary and secondary teachers, Victoria offers employment to post-secondary educators and administrators as well. The University of Victoria and Camosun College have a student population of nearly 33,000 when combined and churn out professionals such as class action lawyers on a yearly basis. Many graduates will also go on to work in government, which is a major player in Victoria's economy because it is both the provincial capital and the center of local and regional government for Vancouver Island.

Shipping and Manufacturing

Drawing a living from the sea is a Canadian trademark. Firms specializing in container shipping and shipbuilding set up in coastal towns like Victoria and help them to grow into major cities. The Port of Victoria is used by deep sea vessels, so it's a likely place to get a job transferring cargo to and from ships, as part of the crew on one of the ships, or serving the many cruise ship passengers who pass through. Nearby Naval Base Esquimault also has need of technicians and repairpersons, as it is the primary naval base on the West Coast.