Victoria: the best city in Canada to work as a woman

THE#BCBIZDAILY
Plus, what 0.5 and Level 4 mean for Vancouver

A Victoria victory
B.C.’s government town, Victoria, is the best place in Canada to be a woman—assuming you value equality—according to a new report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Statistics such as income and unemployment were measured relative to that of men in each city. First-place Victoria scored highest in the economic security and leadership categories. Government jobs, perhaps? That all said, the income gap in Victoria, while the thinnest in Canada, is still significant: women earn 73 per cent of what men do, on average. See the full report here (and where other B.C. cities placed).

How low can we go?
The Bank of Canada has once against slashed the key interest rate, now at 0.5 per cent. Lower interest rates mean cheaper debt—and Canadians taking out bigger mortgages. In short, expect real estate prices to continue their ascent. Or, if you believe some analysts, it could add more fuel to an impending housing crash.

Level 4, people!
The B.C. government has raised the drought rating for the Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley and Sunshine Coast to the highest it can go: Level 4. (Vancouver Island is already there.) Further restrictions on water usage could come into effect in the following days or weeks. “At Level 4, conditions are extremely dry,” the province said in a release on Wednesday. “Further declines in stream, lake and aquifer levels could lead to water shortages and affect people, industry such as agriculture, wildlife, and fish stocks.”