Young Canadians feeling significantly less confident in job prospects due to COVID-19

Authored by techbomb.ca and submitted by NeptuneAgency

An RBC Future Launch study of more than 1,800 Canadians aged 14-29 found that across every province and major city, youth are significantly less confident when it comes to their job prospects and how prepared they are for the future of work.

According to data collected, youth see interruptions to their education, the new realities brought on by social-distancing, and general feelings of anxiety and fear over COVID-19 are all having a negative effect on young peoples’ outlooks as they navigate their career paths. Young Canadians believe learning in a pandemic is not adequately preparing them for getting a job. Almost half of those currently studying say that they feel education during COVID-19 is doing a worse job of preparing them for employment.

There is also a stark divergence between how young women are feeling when compared to their male peers. Feelings of worry increase among young women who have had their job situation affected by COVID-19 – and worsened if they identify as a visible minority or as LGBTQ2S+.

According to a recent RBC Economics Report, Gen-Z women make up 2.5 per cent of the Canadian labour force, but account for 17 percent of the total decline in employment during the pandemic.

Unfortunately, this signals the beginning of a negatively-reinforcing cycle that ultimately contributes to the “she-cession“, when women’s unemployment is higher than men’s unemployment.

“The global COVID-19 pandemic has completely upended the lives of young people across our country. It’s not surprising that they are feeling less confident when it comes to getting the jobs they aspire to.” Mark Beckles, Vice-President, Social Impact and Innovation, RBC

Key findings from the study include:

IsTowel on March 8th, 2021 at 15:35 UTC »

The housing market thing is so frustrating and it seems to be a global issue. I’ve lived in the US, UK, and Ireland. Young people (millennials, zoomers, whatever) are al saying the same thing. They feel like the housing market is far out of reach and only going away faster. It just makes me feel like something has to give. What happens when a whole generation has no purchasing power?

sketchypoutine on March 8th, 2021 at 14:47 UTC »

I'm 33, it took me 8 months to find decent work. This shit is real man. Unless you're willing to work for less than what EI or CERB/CRB pays, you're basically stuck.

Edit; I said it TOOK me 8 months. I found work :)

mattchew1993 on March 8th, 2021 at 14:34 UTC »

For me it just feels pointless. I'm a manager at a marketing company making $50K/year. Every year I feel like I'm getting more and more behind due to the housing market and rent increases. Even with an annual raise, it's not enough to keep up. I feel like I'm working at a loss year-over-year and that's not exactly motivational.