TORONTO, July 3, 2024
/CNW/ - The Government of Canada
is creating generational fairness by creating opportunities for
young Canadians to get the skills they need for well-paying jobs.
Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ) supports
this strategy by helping young people to earn money over the
summer, while gaining skills and experience.
Today, the Honourable Marci Ien, Minister for Women and Gender
Equality and Youth and the Honourable Arif Virani, Minister of
Justice and Attorney General of Canada, highlighted the impact of the CSJ
program in creating over 70,000 job opportunities for youth across
Canada. This initiative is part of
the Government of Canada's ongoing
commitment to support young Canadians, making life more affordable
and providing them with the skills and experience needed to build a
better future.
The CSJ program prioritizes projects that support youth who face
barriers to employment. This includes youth with disabilities,
Indigenous youth, as well as Black and other racialized youth. By
providing all young people with equitable opportunities to develop
their skills, Canada Summer Jobs can help them to succeed in the
job market.
This year's budget includes a proposed $200.5 million investment for 2025–26 to continue
the Canada Summer Jobs program, further demonstrating the
commitment to creating opportunities for young Canadians. These job
opportunities have enabled youth to gain valuable work experience,
develop essential skills and earn money over the summer in various
sectors, including those facing critical labor shortages such as
housing construction.
Canada's success depends on the
success of its youngest generations. Gen Z is a diverse group,
from those who are starting to think about their future career
years from now, to those who are starting their first full-time
job. They have a lifetime of opportunity ahead of them—and we are
empowering them to aim high.
Lifting up Gen Z by ensuring they have good opportunities to
launch their career will be critical to Canada's economic growth potential in the
years to come. As baby boomers are increasingly reaching retirement
age, our younger workforce must be equipped with opportunities to
build their skills and gain meaningful work experience. Gen Z needs
the confidence of knowing they will find a good job that will help
them get ahead.
Through initiatives like Canada Summer Jobs, the Government of
Canada is committed to supporting
youth at every stage of their journey toward a bright and
prosperous future. Our focus remains on making life more affordable
and providing the opportunities young Canadians need to thrive.
Together, we are building a fairer generation and a stronger
Canada.
Quotes
"The Canada Summer Jobs program is more than just an employment
program, it's an investment in the potential of young Canadians and
the economic vitality of our communities. This program gives
thousands of employers the opportunity to meet their staffing needs
over the summer, and it gives youth valuable work experience that
will set them up for a lifetime of success in the job market. It's
win-win for employers and for young people across Canada."
– The Honourable Marci Ien, Minister for Women and Gender Equality
and Youth
"Canada Summer Jobs helps connect
employers in Toronto and across
the country with the workforce of the future. I encourage young
people to visit jobbank.gc.ca/youth today to find many great summer
job opportunities in fields that interest them."
– The Honourable Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney
General of Canada
Quick Facts
- To help younger Canadians pursue and achieve their dreams, the
Government is investing to create more youth job opportunities and
ensure that hard work pays off for the next generation. In Budget
2024, the Government proposed to provide $200.5 million in 2025–26 for Canada Summer Jobs
to provide well-paying summer job opportunities, including in
sectors facing critical labour shortages, such as housing
construction.
- CSJ-funded jobs are full-time (30–40 hours per week) and have a
duration of 6–16 weeks (average duration being 8 weeks).
- Since 2020, CSJ has created more than 380,000 job opportunities
for youth. Last year, CSJ surpassed its job creation target of
70,000 with over 74,200 jobs created.
- In a survey of CSJ youth participants for 2023, 92% of
respondents reported having more confidence in multiple skills
needed for future employment than they had at the beginning of
their CSJ work placement. Additionally, 89% indicated that they had
developed a positive attitude about their future employment
prospects.
- Youth are also encouraged to explore additional opportunities
available through other federal departments under the Youth
Employment and Skills Strategy:
- Every year, Parks Canada hires a large number of young
people to work in spectacular locations and gain real-world
experience in a wide variety of occupations, including in visitor
experience, heritage presentation, conservation, biology, finance
and administration, human resources and more. Candidates can apply
to up to 10 work locations at once through the Summer Jobs
Inventory. Visit Parks Canada student and youth jobs to find
out more.
Related product
Backgrounder: Canada Summer Jobs 2024
Associated Links
Canada Summer Jobs
jobbank.gc.ca/youth
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SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada