Surrey’s largest companies have grown by a combined 9.8% over the last five years, raising their local employee base by 4,600 to a total of 51,429 in 2018 from 46,823 in 2014, according to data from Business in Vancouver’s Biggest Surrey-based Employers list.
However, this growth is concentrated in the city’s top companies. While the average employee count on the BIV list grew by almost 10%, the median employee count fell 16.9%, indicating that employee numbers declined for companies lower on the list.
In 2014, No. 20 on the list, Beachcomber Hot Tubs Group, had 167 employees. In 2018, No. 20, Southridge School, had 131 employees.
Total employment at Surrey’s largest businesses between 2014 and 2018 was lowest in 2015, despite 10 additional companies being on the list that year. Even including the additional companies, the total number of people employed fell by 641 people compared with 2014’s total.
From 2014 to 2015, average employment at Surrey’s largest companies fell by 801.75 employees, and the median employment fell by 237.5 employees.
Despite the larger absolute drop in employment, the median fell 44%, 10 percentage points more than the average.
Median employment at Surrey’s largest companies in 2018 is 448.5, compared with the pre-2015 level of 540.
Average employment reached its pre-2015 levels two years after the 2015 low.
Fraser Health had the largest five-year increase in employment. It grew 18.2% to 26,000 in 2018 from 22,000 in 2014.
During the 2015 low, Fraser Health did not reduce its number of employees, even though many other companies on BIV’s list did.
