Salopek HR<\/a>, tells Now Toronto the high unemployment rates are not a \u201cyouth problem,\u201d but rather a shift in the overall hiring process.<\/p>\nFirstly, while youth often rely on entry-level roles, these are getting harder to land, as they now often require experience, expertise, and immediate results.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEmployers are more risk-averse, and under pressure to hire people who can contribute quickly. That inherently works against younger candidates who are still building that foundation,\u201d Salopek said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As young people deal with higher expectations, many grew up with a different sense of what would lead to success. While a lot of people were told to rely on pursuing further education and \u201cdoing the right things,\u201d the market is now a lot more about experience, adaptability, and what they can contribute to the company, and many are not prepared for the new reality.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother angle that is often overlooked is that youth are entering the workforce at a time when expectations around work have fundamentally changed,\u201d the expert explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are more values-driven, more selective, and more aware of workplace culture, boundaries, and mental health. That is not a weakness, but it can create friction in a market that still rewards availability, flexibility, and traditional career paths.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Technology and AI now also play a much bigger role in the job market. The hiring process has recently become less human, with algorithms and apps being used more frequently to filter applications. With this, youth have another challenge: optimizing their applications for the system.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, AI has been taking over tasks that historically have been done by entry-level employees, from data entry to administrative support, also taking away some of the more junior roles and leading to more competition.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a result, youth are not just competing with each other, they are also competing with a changing definition of work itself,\u201d Salopek added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What can youth do to help in their search process?\u00a0<\/p>\n
In this challenging market, there are no magic solutions to getting hired. However, there are still some strategies young Canadians can use to help in the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Salopek says the first step is to stop treating the hunt as a \u201cvolume game only.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cApplying to 200 jobs with the same resume is rarely the most effective strategy. A better approach is to target roles intentionally, tailor the resume to the posting, and make the employer\u2019s life easy by clearly showing relevant skills, reliability, and results that match what the job is looking for,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
To do that, job seekers should attempt to dig deeper into the company, hiring managers, and what it is that they are looking for in the role, so they can better tailor their application with that in mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another big shift is to adopt a \u201cpositioning yourself as someone worth hiring\u201d strategy rather than just submitting several applications. That means making what you can offer to the role loud and clear, regardless of experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmployers are not just hiring experience, they are hiring potential, reliability, proven performance and attitude. Young candidates who can clearly communicate how they think, how they work, and how they add value tend to stand out quickly,\u201d the expert added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Featuring volunteering experiences, clubs, athletics, student leadership, hospitality roles, internships and projects is also a way to stand out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Networking also remains a great way to get around the system. Developing relationships, even the informal ones, or reaching out to former managers, colleagues, professors, or other contacts might also help job seekers find opportunities beyond job postings.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What should job seekers avoid?\u00a0<\/p>\n
As the job market remains tough, even the smallest details can make the difference between getting hired or not.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cProfessionalism still matters. Small details, how you communicate, attention to spelling and grammar, how you present yourself, how prepared you are, can make a significant difference, especially when employers are choosing between candidates with similar experience levels,\u201d Salopek explains.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Salopek says job seekers should also avoid generalizations and quick-applying to multiple roles. It can be easier to stand out if they have a good online portfolio and great understanding of what the employer is looking for that is reflected in their application.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI would also caution against waiting for the \u201cright\u201d opportunity. In a tighter market, momentum matters. Taking a role that builds experience, even if it is not ideal, can be a strategic move rather than a compromise,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Although it can be frustrating to remain on the hunt, Salopek says youth should try to avoid being discouraged and keep trying instead of assuming there are no opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a difficult market, but difficult does not mean impossible,\u201d she said. \u201cSometimes the most strategic move is taking an opportunity that builds experience, confidence, and credibility, even if it is not the long-term destination. Progression today is often non-linear, and early career decisions should be viewed as building blocks rather than final outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What to know Youth unemployment reached 14.1 per cent in February\u2014more than double the national rate of 6.7…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":624963,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[45,49,48,124,125,12051],"class_list":{"0":"post-624962","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-jobs","12":"tag-unemployment","13":"tag-youth-unemployment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=624962"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624962\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/624963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=624962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=624962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=624962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}