Sarah Chung, a 23-year-old graduating from the University of Calgary, is struggling to secure employment in a challenging youth labour market. She plans to pursue a master’s degree due to the bleak job prospects. Recent statistics reveal that Canadians aged 15-24 are experiencing the highest youth unemployment rates since the mid-1990s, worsened by inflation, population growth, and potential recession. Expert Tricia Williams highlights that youth unemployment serves as an early warning of broader market troubles, indicating significant economic challenges ahead for young job seekers in Canada.
"It's bleak," said the 23-year-old graduate of the University of Calgary's media and communications program. She hasn't been able to find a job in her field and said she intends to pursue a master's degree. "I believe that it's tough just because of everything that's happening with the economy, with our society and with politics."
Apart from the pandemic, Canadians between the ages of 15 and 24 are facing the highest youth unemployment rate this country has seen since the mid-1990s, according to first quarter data from Statistics Canada.
One expert says youth unemployment can be a 'canary in the coal mine' that foreshadows broader troubles in the labour market. "It's kind of an early warning indicator," said Tricia Williams.
Fast forward to 2025, and Canada's youngest workers are grappling with a perfect storm of economic conditions: an inflation crisis that came on the heels of a pandemic, a surge in population growth that has outpaced the number of available jobs, and now, a country teetering closer to recession.
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