Youth employment in weak shape entering summer, finds report
Job postings related to summer employment have dropped this year compared to the past two years, according to Indeed.
As of May 11, 2024, the number of job postings on Indeed including the term “summer” in their title dropped by 6% from their 2023 level, and were down 22% from where they were in 2022.
However, they are 47% higher than in 2019.
Source: Indeed
Total Canadian job postings were down 23% and 39% from one and two years earlier, respectively, back to their 2019 level.
“The result has been that summer job postings now comprise a greater share of total job postings than at any point in recent years,” said Brendon Bernard, Indeed senior economist.
As of early May, 1.1% of all postings explicitly mentioned summer work in their job title, up from less than 0.8% in spring of 2019.
This applies even to jobs that are not necessarily seasonally dependent, according to the report.
Source: Indeed
“The temporary nature of these openings might help students on summer break compete for these positions. But it’s also a sign of the weaker situation facing job seekers overall, as some employers opt for seasonal workers instead of recruiting permanent employees,” said Bernard.
In April, the federal government officially opened the hiring period under Canada Summer Jobs 2024 (CSJ).
Still, summer postings for camp counselors in early May 2024 were up 43% from five years earlier, just around the same level that it was in the past two years.
Youth employment in weak shape
Despite the strong demand for seasonal work, Canadian youth are facing a tough labour market, according to Indeed.
Source: Indeed
In April, 53% of Canadian youth were working (on a non-seasonally adjusted basis), compared to 56% in both 2022 and 2023, and a 55% April average between 2017 to 2019, noted Bernard, citing data from Statistics Canada (StatCan).
In most years, the share of Canadians ages 15-24 who are working will jump by 10 to 12 percentage points between April and July, he said.
“Solid seasonal hiring appetite could help stabilize youth employment rates, compared to earlier years. But with the under-25 population in Canada soaring, reaching 7% year-over-year growth in April 2024, it’s unlikely that demand for workers will keep up with the surge in labour supply,” said Bernard.
“Many young Canadians gain their first work experiences during the summer months, but while opportunities at summer camps are plentiful, finding work elsewhere could be challenging.”
Just 16% of small employers are expecting to hire within the next three to four months, according to a report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) released late in April.
