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Young Canadians looking for a summer job this year suffered through one of the worst employment markets in decades as the country\u2019s sluggish economy takes its toll.<\/p>\n
Canadians aged 15-24 are experiencing the highest unemployment rate since 2010, excluding the first years of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Statistics Canada, the official data agency. <\/p>\n
On Friday, Statistics Canada said the youth unemployment \u201cremained high\u201d at 14.5 per cent in August, just\u00a00.1\u00a0percentage point below the rate recorded in July, which was the highest since September\u00a02010, excluding\u00a02020\u00a0and\u00a02021.<\/p>\n
Overall unemployment in August rose slightly but remains steady at about 7. 1 per cent.<\/p>\n
Rachel Battaglia, economist at the Royal Bank of Canada, said structural reasons behind the struggling jobs market, such as low productivity and growth, had been exacerbated by the impact of the US upending global trade.<\/p>\n
On an annualised basis the Canadian economy shrank 1.6 per cent in the second quarter, Statistics Canada said last month. <\/a> <\/p>\n \u201cYoung workers do tend to bear the brunt of labour market slowdowns,\u201d Battaglia said. <\/p>\n \u201c[They] also tend to be concentrated among a few industries \u2014 like retail trade, food, and accommodation\u2009.\u2009.\u2009.\u2009This leaves them particularly vulnerable to shocks which disproportionately impact these industries,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n High levels of inflation after the Covid-19 pandemic in mid-2021 led to Canadian consumers cutting spending and the Bank of Canada launching a series of interest rate hikes, forcing businesses to slow<\/a> hiring as economic confidence deteriorated. <\/p>\n This year, President Donald Trump\u2019s tariffs have hit exports to the US, Canada\u2019s biggest trading partner, and have weakened Canada\u2019s economy and slowed investment. <\/p>\n These employment levels were \u201ctypically only seen during recessionary periods and has come in contrast to a surprisingly resilient labour market for other age groups\u201d, said Andrew Grantham, an economist for CIBC.<\/p>\n Economists describe the \u201cscarring effect\u201d on young people who begin their career during an economic downturn.\u00a0<\/p>\n Surranna Sandy, chief executive of Skills for Change, a Toronto-based non-profit helping vulnerable groups find work, said young people are struggling with mental health issues, the cost of living crisis and housing affordability pressures. <\/p>\n \u201cWe posted an ad for the first 20 of 60 places for a job training programme. We had over 1,100 applicants over four days, they were applying for a job training programme, not even a job,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Sandy said the sluggish youth jobs market had particularly hit young people who had few qualifications or limited experience, with unemployment levels far higher for young women and marginalised groups.\u00a0\u201cBlack youth, indigenous youth, newcomers, racialised youths, they have real challenges,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n Conservative party leader Pierre Poilievre has blamed the Liberal government\u2019s immigration policy as a key reason for young Canadians struggling to find jobs.<\/p>\n Four in five job losses in July were young workers, according to Desjardin economists, who added \u201ctemporary residents since the pandemic has also played a role\u201d, in a report<\/a> released on Thursday.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday told reporters the government\u2019s immigration levels would decline from roughly 7 per cent of the population to about 5 per cent over several years. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s clear that we can improve overall immigration policies. We\u2019re working on that, and we\u2019re setting clear goals to adjust,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n The country\u2019s non-permanent resident population, which includes overseas students and temporary foreign workers, has doubled to just under 3mn from 1.3mn in the second half of 2021<\/a>, according to a report from Statistics Canada.<\/p>\n The surge in numbers was a result of the previous government\u2019s plan to bring in more labour from overseas to help kick start the economy after the pandemic.<\/p>\n