The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada has caused the first decrease in jobs since April 2020. This new downturn has resulted in heightened concerns about employment prospects, especially as summer approaches for university students.
The onset of the pandemic in March and April 2020 caused the loss of 3 million jobs in Canada, and unemployment levels remain higher than they were before the pandemic. A decrease in COVID-19 cases in the months that followed, accompanied by a loosening of health measures, allowed the Canadian economy to rebound and regain 1.7 million jobs in the summer months.
However, the tightening of public health restrictions in the face of record-high cases in the fall and winter has led to the loss of 63,000 jobs last December, causing many students to worry about the state of the job market this year.
“The resurgence of the virus is hitting Canada hard. Sharp increases in caseloads and hospitalizations are leaving provinces with little choice but to impose or prolong restrictions on an economy that is but a shadow of itself,” stated TD Senior Economist Sri Thanabalasingam in a response to this data. “It will be a rocky road for the Canadian economy until vaccines can be widely distributed and normal life can resume.”
David Ip Yam, director of the Career Education and Development Centre at York, has acknowledged that the economy is currently experiencing a downward trend. “Students and recent grads have been and may continue to be adversely affected by the pandemic,” he says.
However, he emphasizes that not all industries are equally affected by the pandemic. The pandemic may have brought with it a change in working habits that are similarly industry-specific, such as working from home. These new practices may continue even as health restrictions are loosened and the economy gradually reopens.
“However, labour market trends have and continue to evolve,” Ip Yam says. “In certain industries, job postings have gone up compared to 2019 while in some other industries, job postings went down.”
Ip Yam remains optimistic that job prospects will improve this year.
“While we cannot predict what 2021 will bring, we can say that employers are still hiring new grads and we’re incredibly grateful to see many summer job opportunities on our job portal right now. We believe that remote work has opened more opportunities for York students. In fact, the federal government has just finished working with York to fill over 200 positions, including many full-time ones.”
Even as Canada continues to struggle as it records on average 6,000 new cases of COVID-19 per day, companies have continued to seek out students and recent graduates.
“While we saw an overall 21 per cent decline in job postings in Canada from January to September 2020, compared to January to September 2019, we are hearing from our employer contacts that they are still hiring new grads,” explains Ip Yam. “This is why we’ve not stopped promoting and hosting so many employer and alumni networking and recruiting events for students to access.”
The Career Centre continues to provide assistance to current students and recent graduates during the pandemic, including work opportunities and career advice:
“Get in touch with the staff and students at Career Education & Development. The schedules and registration information are on our Experience York platform. There’s a LOT there, so if you’re not sure where to begin, start with a virtual drop-in session at the Virtual Career Lounge where a trained peer career educator can point you in the right direction. We’re here for you!”
