Majority support mandatory year of civilian service for Canadians under 30: survey

A significant majority of Canadians seem to support the idea of young people doing a year of mandatory civilian service, as long as it’s not military.

Making it mandatory for young people in Canada to do a year of non-military service is popular, according to a new survey from the Angus Reid Institute.

Among those surveyed, support was widespread for “donated” service across multiple civil society sectors that would see young people take up work that could include things like firefighting, health care or nature conservation, a summary of the survey results said.

Seventy-four percent of those surveyed embraced mandatory service it for public health support service, such as working with seniors or in hospitals. Seventy-three percent for environmental support, such as working with Parks Canada. Support for youth service, which includes things like tutoring or after-school care, came in at 72 per cent. The civil protection option, which includes working on the front-lines of disasters like wildfires or floods saw 70 per cent support.

Notably, a year of compulsory service gets plenty of support from the very demographic that would be conscripted.

“There’s a 2:1 to 3:1 ratio across those Canadians, both men and women, under 30. Both say, ‘Yeah that’s something I would like to see happen,’” said Jon Roe with the Angus Reid Institute Monday.

According to the survey, the most compelling reason people support mandatory service for young people is because of its perceived benefits.

“They feel like maybe this is a good opportunity for young people to get some experience in a field maybe they would not necessarily have had an opportunity to, and that will help them maybe in their own careers,” explained Roe.

Mandatory public service of this kind already happens in countries including France and Germany, the survey results summary notes.

However, when it comes to compulsory military service like they have in South Korea or Finland, opinions shift dramatically, with 44 per cent opposed and 43 per cent in favour.

The survey was conducted online between June 20 and June 23 of this year, among a randomized sample of 1,619 adults. A sample of this size has a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points, 19 times out of 20, the institute’s summary of its methodology said.