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Five-year population growth (maximum score of 10 points) This figure represents the population growth for each city from 2015 to 2020. We gave the highest-growth city 10 points and scored the others in proportion to that. Share of population aged 65 and over (5 points) This value represents the share of a city's total population aged 65 and older. Given that the pandemic poses a higher health risk to older people, we assumed that cities with a larger proportion of seniors would similarly be at greater economic risk. The city with the lowest share of seniors received a score of 5, with the others scoring in inverse proportion. Immigrant component of growth (5 points) This number reflects the segment of five- year population growth composed of international immigrants, as reported by Statistics Canada for 2016, the most recent census period. Knowing that the pandemic has curtailed international immigration to Canada, we assumed greater economic risk for those cities most reliant on immigrants for growth. Again, the city with the lowest value received five points, with the others scoring accordingly. Household financial vulnerability (15 points) This figure–an index created by research part- ner Environics Analytics –looks at a range of household financial variables, including debt, liquid assets and discre- tionary income, to show how precarious a typical household's finances are in a given city. The higher the index value, the more vulnerable a city's households are on aver- age. Therefore, we gave the lowest value 15 points and scored the others in relation to that. Share of workforce in public administration (5 points) This indicator reflects the proportion of a city's workforce employed in the industry that Stat- Can identified as least affected by COVID-19. The community with the high- est share of its residents in public administration– as defined by the North American Industry Classi- fication System (NAICS)– received 5 points, and we evaluated the others in relation to it. Share of workforce in wholesale trade (5 points) One of the industries least impacted by the pandemic, wholesale trade was the first to see employment recover and exceed pre-COVID levels. Giving the city with the highest share of workers from this sector a 5, we scored the others in proportion to that. Share of workforce in information, culture and recreation (5 points) To represent the second- most COVID-afflicted industry, we gave the city with the lowest share of its workforce employed in information, culture and recreation five points, with the others ranking accordingly. Share of workforce in accommodation and food services (10 points) Hit harder by the pandemic than any other industry, accommoda- tion and food services employs twice the workforce of the above sectors, on average, so we weighted it accord- ingly. The lowest value received a score of 10, with the other cit- ies scoring in inverse proportion. Residential sales per 10,000 residents (10 points) This number, from quar- terly BC Assessment data, reflects the year-to-date sales totals for single- family and strata residen- tial properties to the end of September 2020. After dividing sales totals by total city population, we multiplied that figure by 10,000 to determine the number of sales per 10,000 residents. We gave the highest value 10 points and scored the others accordingly. Housing starts per 10,000 residents (10 points) We derived this value from the year-to-date hous- ing starts from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.'s monthly Starts and Completions Survey to the end of September 2020. The city with the highest number of housing starts per 10,000 residents received a score of 10, with the other cities scor- ing in relation to that. Change in jobs per 10,000 residents (10 points) This figure measures the change in the employed labour force from Janu- ary to September 2020, derived from StatCan's monthly Labour Force Survey. We scored the year-to-date difference in jobs out of a maximum value of 10. Average annual unemployment rate (10 points) For this indicator, we averaged unemployment rates for each city from the first three quarters of the year. The averages were derived from rates reported in StatCan's monthly Labour Force Sur- vey for January through September 2020. We gave the lowest average 10 points and evaluated the others in relation to that. • How We Crunched the Numbers T o determine the most economically resilient cities in B.C., we examined 12 eco- nomic indicators with weightings ranging from 5 to 15 percent, including two carried over from last year's Best Cities for Work ranking and 10 new ones. The weightings strike a balance between demographic- and workforce-related indicators, which include pre-pandemic risk and resiliency factors, and those tracking aspects of 2020 economic recovery, like housing starts and unemployment rates. Each city received a score out of 100 points and is ranked accordingly. BCBUSINESS.CA JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021 BCBUSINESS 49 BEST CITIES FOR WORK IN B.C.