‘Mission Impossible:’ Maritime students struggle to find summer jobs

Students are eager to find summer employment but the opportunities are few and far between.

Its the end of the school year and thousands of students have hit the pavement looking for work.

But finding and securing a summer job is proving harder and harder for students across the country.

“In the summertime it can be quite competitive. Due to my age, its hard to find opportunities out there to get a paying job,” says Grade 9 student, Olivia Hernandez-Jennex. “I’ve probably sent out around 10 resumes around my area.”

The federal government announced an expansion of the Canada Summer Jobs program, which offers wage subsidies to businesses hiring young people for seasonal work.

That comes with a $25-million price tag, which Devin Drover, the Atlantic director for the Canadian Taxpayers Association, says is a concern for them.

“This [comes] at a time where the Government of Canada is spending tens of billions of dollars just on servicing government debt. So, we’re always cautious to see more expenditure at a time when the government, every year is adding on a lot of borrowing,” says Drover.

There’s no denying the demand is being felt here at home.

Stephanie Schnare, the marketing manager for the Halifax Shopping Centre, says a recent job fair held at the mall drew a large crowd.

“We definitely saw between 100 [and] 150 people come out for the job fair which is significant,” says Schnare. “We saw anywhere from high school students to certainly university and younger grads.”

But even with help, some students say it continues to be a struggle.

Whether it’s having a lack of experience or finding a job that allows them to juggle other responsibilities.

“As a nursing student where we have a super busy schedule during the summer, and we have clinical hours. So that can make it difficult to work because we’re already doing full time clinical hours as well,” says Dalhousie University nursing student, Samantha Layden.

As the national unemployment rate skyrockets, job seekers of all ages are at a standstill.

“My little brother [is] trying to find just summer employment… I have family members trying to find full-time employment that have recently been laid off and it just seems like mission impossible for anyone to find a job right now,” says another Dalhousie University student, Karah Fleet.

But Drover believes the federal government is better suited helping businesses, as way to combat the issue.

“Its clear that businesses are struggling…whether it’s through prices going up due to inflation or things like the threat of tariffs, it means there’s less opportunity to hire and to grow their business. So I think, one of the things the federal government could do right now is look at lowering some of the corporate tax rates,” says Drover.