Youth unemployment rate is at a 15-year high, says Statistics Canada
Are you thinking about getting a part-time gig after school?
You might have heard that finding work can be tough for young people right now.
In fact, according to Statistics Canada, the unemployment rate for people aged 15 to 24 recently hit its highest level in nearly 15 years, not counting the COVID-19 pandemic.
CBC Kids News reached out to Canada’s minister of jobs and families, Patty Hajdu, to ask what the government is doing to address youth unemployment.
We did not hear back in time for our deadline.
We also took to the streets of Brampton, Ontario, to ask kids and teens about their goals for work, their luck finding part-time jobs and their top tips for getting your first one.
Click play to hear what they had to say, then keep reading to get some job-hunting tips from experts. ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Experts share their top 5 job-search tips
CBC Kids News spoke to two employment experts to get their best tips for landing your first job: Scott Ravary, a senior manager with Ontario’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development; and Hilary Hagar, a researcher at Toronto Metropolitan University’s Future Skills Centre.
1. Use your network
Ravary and Hagar suggest reaching out to friends, family and even contacts at your school to tell them you are looking for a job. They might be able to share some helpful information.
Ask questions, be curious and see where it leads you.
2. Practise your soft skills through volunteering
Both experts agree that there is a high demand for soft skills — like communication, teamwork and social skills.
Volunteering can help you get out of your comfort zone and learn to communicate well.
“You can learn and flourish those skills through volunteering [and] through the little side kind of work that you might do for your neighbour,” said Ravary.
3. Turn extracurriculars into experience
You might worry that you don’t have enough job experience.
But there are other kinds of experience you can put on your resumé, Hagar said.
“Don’t be afraid to leverage your volunteer experiences or any leadership experiences that you might have through school or through extracurriculars,” she said.
Be sure to include sports, clubs and school projects — anything where you showed initiative and leadership skills.
“If you’re playing a sport and you know you’re excelling at that sport, you’re likely seen as a leader within that sports team,” said Ravary. “That leadership can be something that’s brought forward in a resumé.”
Looking for your first job might feel intimidating when you don’t have work experience, but experts say there are ways to bulk up your resumé. (Image credit: Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
4. Ask to job shadow
You can learn a lot from reaching out to someone who has a job you think is cool.
“Talk to somebody in the field that you’re interested in,” Hagar said. You can ask about shadowing them to see what it is like to work in that field.
5. Use power words on your resumé
Don’t fear a one-page resumé, said Ravary: “Keep it simple, keep it clean, keep it honest.”
He suggests starting your resumé by using action words. “Things like: organized, led, created.”
And be “quantitative” in your measurements.
“Put a number to it so that it really highlights for the employer what you can achieve,” he said.
For example, instead of “raised money for charity at a bake sale,” try “raised $100 dollars for charity at a bake sale.”
Know your rights, too
Once you get a job, remember that even though you’re not an adult, you still have rights as an employee, Ravary said.
“You’re entitled to breaks, you’re entitled to fair pay and a safe workplace.”
Be familiar with your rights, he said, as each province and territory has different rules for teen workers.
Have more questions? Want to tell us how we’re doing? Use the “send us feedback” link below. ⬇️⬇️⬇️